Guiding autonomous cars safely and efficiently across countries and across continents requires a precise, unified mapping system. We’re joining forces with leading location data providers across Asia, to create a worldwide, standardized and dynamic high definition (HD) map.

Country to country, continent to continent, fostering standardization has historically been a pain-point for auto manufacturers. Setting aside emission standards and safety requirements, we as a planet still haven’t decided on which side of the car to put the steering wheel.

We can see the autonomous cars on the horizon, and we can take steps now to ensure that car makers aren’t forced to reinvent the wheel, say, for each and every country where their vehicles will be on the road.

This is why we’re proud to announce we’re joining forces with NavInfo of China, IPC/Pioneer of Japan, and SK Telecom of Korea to create the OneMap Alliance.

The OneMap Alliance will provide a global, dynamic high definition map that contains all the precise data necessary to empower fully autonomous cars on the roadway. Aligned with the same standards as the HERE HD Live Map, vehicles from Beijing, to Tokyo, to Seoul will all be able to read and contribute to a unified high definition map system, capable of operating in any region.

Automakers are quickly bringing higher and higher levels of automation to market and standard definition digital maps lack the detail of data, like lane markers, road signs, and traffic signals, needed to help guide fully autonomous vehicles safely and efficiently.

HD Live Map is emerging as the gold standard of maps for automated cars. For automakers, it’s important that they can leverage trusted mapping and location technology both at home and abroad. The collaborative technology approach of the OneMap Alliance will make that possible.

By the end of the year, HERE HD Live Map will cover more than 1 million kilometres of roadways worldwide. At its heart, it is a dynamic digital representation of the roadways that utilizes both sensor and camera data from connected vehicles .

As the world changes, HD Live Map self-heals, meaning it corrects and calibrates itself to stay fresh, and rapidly relays changes in the roads to ensure the data stays useful and trusted. It provides drivers and autonomous vehicles with the full picture of the road ahead, even when the road ahead is obscured by trucks, turns in the road, or inclement weather.

Automakers who have automated cars in their plans for the future are thinking globally, and they need a map solution that scales with the pace of their business. By putting the OneMap Alliance to work, they’re leveraging map data systems that are fully harmonized across regions, giving their customers the same high-quality data for vehicles across the U.S. as they do in Europe and Asia.

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