Meet the NEC Labs America Intern Helping to Make Autonomous Vehicles Safer and More Secure

Interns like Kaiyuan quickly become part of a project team applying innovative technology to industry-leading concepts.

“My research interests mainly focus on security and privacy in machine learning,” said Kaiyuan. “With this expertise, I’m able to provide unique perspectives in our collaborative work with other researchers on NEC Labs America’s Media and Analytics team working on improving the robustness of the autonomous driving system.”

This work extends well beyond the physical security of autonomous vehicles. As with most emerging technologies, securing the data generated, processed, and used by autonomous cars is complex. Kaiyuan is helping to develop safety-critical driving scenarios that improve the robustness and safety of autonomous driving systems.

Take, for example, the multitude of information captured by the cameras and sensors equipped on autonomous vehicles. They record a vast array of data from the surrounding environment, everything from other vehicles and traffic signals to hazard cones and pedestrians, even down to lane markings. Kaiyuan is actively involved in automatically generating safety-critical driving scenarios, which is crucial in enhancing the real-world safety of autonomous driving.