2019 was a challenging year for the automated driving (AD) sector as the reality of the challenges it faces continued to sink in. Several startups went out of business and several of the larger players in the segment consolidated their efforts. Across the board, as the technical teams continue development on the core technology, these companies are putting more focus on developing viable business models for the commercialization of AD.

There were no new significant commercial deployments of AD systems in 2019 and some, such as General Motor’s Cruise unit, pushed back their launch targets. The most notable commercial operations including Aptiv, Waymo, May Mobility, and Yandex continue to use safety operators in their vehicles while carrying paying passengers. Some, including Waymo, have conducted limited open road testing without safety operators, but true driverless mobility services are unlikely to start appearing before 2021. Many of the companies that weren’t already working on goods delivery as a key part of their commercial aspirations have turned their attention in that direction. The companies that are best positioned to successfully commercialize AD include a mix of tech companies, a few established automakers and suppliers, and a couple of startups, while several automakers that were in a stronger position in past years have significantly faltered recently.

This Guidehouse Research Leaderboard examines the strategy and execution of 18 leading AD system companies. These players are rated on 10 criteria: vision; go-to market strategy; partners; production strategy; technology; sales, marketing, and distribution; product capability; product quality and reliability; product portfolio; and staying power. Using the Guidehouse Insights, a Guidehouse Company, proprietary Leaderboard methodology, vendors are profiled, rated, and ranked with the goal of providing industry participants with an objective assessment of these companies’ relative strengths and weaknesses in the global AD market.



Top 10 Vendors