Public beta opens for all developers globally
By: Tory Smith
The Vision SDK is now open to all developers. Monday’s launch at the Shanghai Auto Show lets developers around the world add AI maps into driving applications to create immersive navigation experiences with augmented reality, interpret signs and driving conditions on-the-fly, customize safety alerts, and monitor driver performance.
We built the Vision SDK to run on the billions of connected devices already in the hands of today’s drivers. Highly efficient neural networks process imagery directly on the edge, whether you’re developing for mobile, embedded, or automotive applications. This release includes cross-platform parity with support for Android, iOS, and embedded Linux. The SDK supports low-cost Android phones, multiple iPhone generations going back to the 6s, consumer dash cameras, connected WiFi cameras, and embedded automotive systems — we’re building an accessible platform. Everything works as part of the larger Mapbox stack, letting developers connect to the Mapbox cloud for turn-by-turn directions with live traffic to power augmented reality navigation. Customers can also integrate Vision SDK within alternative navigation SDKs.
Our launch partners at the Shanghai Auto Show illustrate the diversity of platforms needing AI maps. From embedded systems shipping in new cars today to IoT devices serving the consumer navigation market, we’ve tuned the Vision SDK to run on super low cost hardware. Situational context is interpreted with AI-powered image processing that is fast enough to run in real-time, yet efficient enough to run locally on mobile devices.
SDK Features and Neural Network Functionality
The Vision SDK adds augmented reality navigation, classification and display of regulatory and warning signs, and driver alerts for nearby vehicles, cyclists, and pedestrians.
Augmented Reality Navigation and Lane Guidance: Lane detection allows smarter navigation instructions with augmented reality, audio cues for transitions, and traditional maps adjusting their viewing angle as drivers encounter complex intersections. For example, drivers can be alerted when a lane change is needed to complete a maneuver. Then, when reaching a destination, additional POI details or tips on parking can be overlaid on the screen.
Driver Assistance: The SDK interprets regulatory and warning signs, estimates the driver’s current speed, and detects lane markings, crosswalks, pedestrians, cyclists, and other vehicles. Alerts trigger when the SDK detects road hazards in the vehicle’s path. Developers can set custom thresholds for alerting drivers with visual or audio cues.
Live Traffic Alerts: The SDK’s sign and object detection keeps drivers informed about changing road conditions, such as construction and lane closures. The SDK also pulls in live traffic data from Mapbox. Whether you’re working through our Directions API, Matrix API, or Navigation SDK, integration is easy.
Fleet Management and Driver Performance: The SDK recognizes risky behaviors like speeding, tailgating, and running stop signs, and enables triggered actions such as video capture when specified events are detected. Fleet managers can build configurable incident reports with supporting images and videos to monitor driver performance, and improve driver safety using aggregated driving performance data from the Vision SDK.
Launch Partners: Embedded Systems to 300 Million Mobile MAUs
We’re at the Shanghai Auto Show launching with partners who are transforming mobility in China: Sogou, the search giant with more than 300 million MAUs, and Pateo, a leader in integrated automotive infotainment systems. These new partnerships strengthen our existing global network with friends like Microsoft and Arm, who will extend the Vision SDK’s reach to their billions of devices. Sogou is using the Vision SDK to enrich their mobile app with augmented reality navigation, while Pateo is integrating the SDK for lane level guidance, augmented reality and driver assistance features.
All the demos today were running on low power Arm processors. With the Vision SDK and the Arm-enabled devices already in the hands of billions of people, we’re able to segment and extract features from the environment more than ten times a second. We can now take inputs from sensors that ship on every smartphone and process it all on the device.
“A million and a half developers use Mapbox products that will continue to impact many markets. We look forward to working with them to bring the power of machine learning to the edge.”
— Jem Davies, Vice President, Fellow and General Manager, Machine Learning, Arm
AI Maps: Anonymous Data from Vision SDK Updated Map Data
The innovation of the Vision SDK is its ability to process live data with distributed sensors, keeping up with the rapidly changing road network. As changes are detected, the SDK classifies new road boundaries, lane markings, curbs, crosswalks, traffic signs, etc. — the features needed to build and maintain the most detailed map of the world.
Live interpretation of road conditions with connectivity to the rest of the Mapbox ecosystem gives drivers access to real-time, granular road information, improving safety, efficiency, and user experience. This stream of data is used to update the map live, and developers use this new ability to create richer, more immersive experiences with Mapbox maps and navigation.
Since all the AI runs on-device, the Vision SDK doesn’t need to stream or record imagery to update the map. Leveraging a decentralized set of sensors means our maps benefit every time the Vision SDK is used in an app. We’re building our Vision telemetry pipeline while maintaining privacy, following the same principles we use with other types of location data.
Pricing for Vision SDK
We’re developers building for developers, so from free to enterprise-scale, the Vision SDK comes with the same complete set of features.
Public Beta Pricing (beginning June 2019)
For the next two months, the Vision SDK will be free for up to 50,000 MAUs. Starting in June, we will continue to offer a free tier of 50 MAUs so developers can start building without reaching for a credit card. If you need help pricing your project, our expert sales team is happy to connect.
Pay-as-you-grow: Our pay-as-you-go pricing gives developers a fair price no matter what is built. Only pay for what is used — no commitments necessary. Don’t get stalled by contracts, capacity planning, and price modeling — so you can focus on shipping faster.
Volume discounts: Discounts trigger as your usage grows, so you always get a fair price. When your application reaches volume scale, you’ll automatically get volume pricing. No negotiation necessary.
Committed-use discounts: Pricing is simply usage-based, meaning there is no need to get locked into big contracts. If you want to commit to a monthly volume and receive a significant discount beyond standard volume discounts, just contact our sales team to learn more.
Get ready to build
I’ll be providing a full overview of the Vision SDK in a few weeks on Thursday 5/2; you can sign up for the live session here. Register if you want to learn more and ask me questions!
Ready to build? Go to vision.mapbox.com/install to download the SDKs.
Tory Smith - Product Manager - Mapbox | LinkedIn
Vision SDK launches at the Shanghai Automotive Show was originally published in Points of interest on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.