University of Waterloo's Autonomous Racing team wins award at international racing competition

Waterloo Autonomous Racing (WATORACE), including two Mechatronics students, Ben Kurrek and Elijah O’Leary, won 4th place in the Indy Autonomous Challenge (IAC) virtual race #3, also capturing the Rising Star Award.

Ben and Elijah have contributed to determining the best racing line for the car to follow, as well as the throttle controller and test scenarios.

The IAC brings together 18 university teams from 4 continents in the world’s first head-to-head, high-speed autonomous race at the famous Indianapolis Motor Speedway (IMS). WATORACE is the only Canadian entry, and they are proud to be representing UWaterloo and Canada in this competition.

The final virtual race is set to take place this May, and WATORACE is carrying over its momentum from the last race to try and claim the podium. While this will be no easy task, the team is determined to make our vehicle the fastest on the track. Succeeding in this competition will help to further Canada’s reputation as a leader in autonomous technologies.