Tern AI's Affordable GPS Alternative Proven Effective

We’ve all experienced that frustrating moment when the GPS glitches and causes us to miss an exit on the highway. Tern AI, a company developing a low-cost GPS alternative, explains that this issue is due to the current technology being limited by its reliance on satellite positioning.

Tern AI claims to have found a way to determine a vehicle’s position using only map information and the vehicle’s existing sensor data. Their system is described as affordable and does not require additional expensive sensors. During a demonstration at SXSW, the Austin-based startup showcased their ability to “derive a position from nothing.”

The Importance of Tern’s Breakthrough

Brett Harrison, co-founder and president of Tern AI, emphasized the significance of this breakthrough for various reasons. Commercially, companies relying on GPS, such as ride-hailing apps and delivery services, face time, money, and fuel losses when drivers need to backtrack due to faulty GPS positioning. Additionally, critical systems like aviation, disaster response, and precision farming depend on GPS, making it essential to find alternative solutions.

US Initiatives for GPS Alternatives

The US government has shown a commitment to exploring alternatives to GPS. President Donald Trump signed an executive order to reduce dependence on a single source of positioning, navigation, and timing (PNT) services like GPS. Various initiatives direct agencies like the Department of Defense and the National Security Council to test and integrate non-GPS technologies to ensure resilient PNT solutions. This shift is crucial as foreign adversaries have demonstrated the ability to spoof GPS signals, posing risks to the economy and national security.

Testing Tern’s System in Austin

During a demonstration in Austin, Cyrus Behroozi connected his 2019 Honda Civic to the Tern application via Bluetooth, enabling the system to utilize the vehicle’s existing sensors. The Tern technology can be integrated directly into vehicles from model year 2009 onward. The system demonstrated its ability to localize vehicles in challenging environments like parking garages, tunnels, and mountains, where GPS often struggles.

Tern’s system, which operates as a closed loop and independently derives its position, offers improved privacy and accuracy compared to traditional GPS technology. The company has designed its solution to be scalable, setting it apart from costly hardware-intensive systems like those used in Waymo’s autonomous vehicles.
“At the manufacturer level, if Tern is implemented within the infotainment system, it’s just a software download, so extraordinarily scalable. All new vehicles have the sensor data we need. The map data already exists with all the providers today. So it’s quite simple.”

Tern’s potential future customers could range from automakers to mobile phone manufacturers, from Google to Uber. Harrison mentioned that the startup is open to growing the company or being acquired.

“The primary focus is getting this technology into the hands of the economy, considering the increasing threats and the untapped potential of technology constrained by triangulation limitations,” said Harrison.

Tern is currently exploring opportunities with the government and recently received a contract award from the U.S. Department of Transportation after demonstrating its technology alongside nine other companies from around the world.

“We aim to showcase to the government the possibilities enabled by American innovation,” Harrison stated.

Clarification: This article was updated to specify the typical time for Tern’s system to achieve full convergence and to eliminate unclear information about GPS.