Capitol News

Team PoliMOVE-MSU, consisting of students and faculty from Michigan State University and Politecnico di Milano, participated in a pioneering multicar racing event at the 2025 Indy Autonomous Challenge (IAC). This event was part of the Consumer Technology Association’s annual CES 2025 tech trade show on January 9.

The competition featured a 20-lap, open-racing format with cars racing head-to-head. It marked the first instance where more than two cars raced simultaneously at the IAC, testing the AI drivers' multi-agent interaction capabilities at high speeds. Team PoliMOVE-MSU secured a top position in this new IAC competition tier through prequalification runs conducted throughout the week.

"The IAC took it up a notch this year by introducing the 20-lap, head-to-head event, and it was an incredible opportunity to see the speed, handling and sophistication of these race cars and the potential of AI in high-speed motorsports," said Judd Herzer, mobility director at MSU. "We are proud that MSU was one of just four teams that qualified for this historic milestone of competing in a more traditional Indianapolis 500-style racing event with autonomous vehicles."

During the race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Team PoliMOVE-MSU's AV-24 race car faced challenges due to a power surge that affected all teams' vehicle sensors during the first lap. Despite these difficulties, they finished in fourth place.

Besides this milestone event, six other university teams participated in time trials and passing competitions based on their performance tiers.

MSU joined forces with PoliMOVE-MSU in December 2023. The IAC AV-24 race cars are equipped with hardware for autonomous control, programmed by team members. The IAC showcases future mobility possibilities with driverless Indy-style race cars reaching speeds near 200 mph.

"While the IAC races are exciting to watch, more importantly, there is a lot that goes into training the vehicles and a lot of strategic and on-the-fly problem-solving that goes into it," Herzer stated. "It highlights one of many experiential learning opportunities available on MSU’s campus that enable students to apply classroom knowledge."

MSU Mobility and College of Engineering faculty also engaged in CES conference sessions discussing autonomous driving's future alongside AI technologies.

Current sponsors include DENSO North America Foundation, Michigan Office of Future Mobility and Electrification, and Michigan State University Research Foundation. Corporations interested in sponsorship can contact David Bertram.