Autonomous vehicles collect extensive data through cameras, sensors, biometric monitoring, GPS tracking, and machine learning, creating detailed records of individuals’ activities and movements.
These records can reveal sensitive information about health, affiliations, employment, and social relationships.
At Michigan State University, a team of researchers, including three engineers, one business expert, and a legal scholar, are combining their expertise in data collection, generative AI, and policy analysis to produce practical mobility solutions.
On August 11, the MSU Research Mobility Summit will showcase interdisciplinary research.
On August 11, the MSU Research Mobility Summit will showcase interdisciplinary research from engineering, business, law, and the social sciences, focusing on innovations in vehicle connectivity, infrastructure integration, AI-enabled workforce training, and ethical considerations.
Michigan State University campus mobility researchers cover the transportation ecosystem, including personal vehicles, bike lanes, walking paths, transit, freight, rail, maritime, and aviation systems, with the goal of creating safer and more equitable mobility solutions.
According to Judd Herzer, MSU Mobility director, the collaborative approach ensures new technologies are technically feasible, scalable, economically viable, safe, trusted, and ready for real-world deployment.
One associate professor in Electrical and Computer Engineering uses simulated autonomous racing competitions to study how self-driving vehicles make coordinated decisions.
Instead of combining multiple goals into a single score, this professor developed a method that keeps each goal separate, allowing the algorithm to identify solutions where each participant achieves the best possible outcome without disadvantaging others.
Another associate professor in Electrical and Computer Engineering develops control and decision-making methods for uncrewed aerial vehicles, enabling reliable operation in challenging conditions.
This includes advances in multirotor drones that can track moving targets, compensate for wind, model uncertainty, land on moving platforms, and detect actuator failures in real time.
The professor also created mathematical models to help autonomous systems determine when and how to act, and developed data-driven predictive control methods to improve automated vehicle safety, including rollover prevention.
In Civil and Environmental Engineering, an associate professor examines how autonomous vehicles interact with existing transportation networks.
The team’s simulation tool provides detailed transportation data to estimate emissions, calculate technology costs, measure travel times, and predict additional miles traveled due to AV use.
This data supports agencies, manufacturers, and ride-sharing services in building safer, more efficient systems that reduce congestion and emissions.
The model is based on Chicago’s transportation network and accounts for both human-driven and autonomous vehicles.
In the College of Business, an assistant professor developed a generative AI coaching system for sales consultants in an automotive retail network.
With customer consent, conversations are recorded and analyzed by AI, which summarizes customer needs and generates recommendations for follow-up.
While designed for automotive dealers, this system could also benefit staff training in other high-stakes customer-facing roles.
Autonomous vehicle technology also raises important privacy concerns.
An associate professor at the College of Law notes that AVs collect extensive data through cameras, sensors, biometric monitoring, GPS tracking, and machine learning, creating detailed records of individuals’ activities and movements.
These records can reveal sensitive information about health, religious practices, affiliations, employment, and social relationships.
The researcher urges government and industry to prioritize the right to travel and participate in society without generating unnecessary digital records.
In May 2025, University of Michigan’s artificial intelligence (AI) platform got a special mention during the U.S. Senate’s committee hearing on “Winning the AI Race: Strengthening U.S. Capabilities in Computing and Innovation.”
According to the testimony, the University of Michigan is the first in the world to provide generative AI tools for all its students to prepare them for the workforce of tomorrow. The university shared its pride in being among the best in terms of AI access and literacy on social media.
Witnesses at the U.S. Senate Commerce Committee hearing included Sam Altman, co-founder and CEO of OpenAI; Lisa Su, CEO and chair of Advanced Micro Devices (AMD); Michael Intrator, co-founder and CEO of CoreWeave; and Brad Smith, vice chair and president of Microsoft Corporation.These participants agreed on the transformative power of artificial intelligence (AI) and emphasized the need to address the potential risks associated with unchecked AI development.
The hearing highlighted the importance of strategic investments and establishing a regulatory framework to maintain the United States’ leadership in the AI sector.
In addition to advocating for AI regulation, the witnesses noted the necessity for robust infrastructure, including data centers and energy systems, to support advancements in AI.
The adoption of AI drives exponential increases in demand for computing power and energy.
The hearing also focused on the importance of investing in workforce training to prepare the American labor force for the evolving demands of the AI industry.
The testimonies underscored the critical role of government and private sector collaboration in navigating the challenges and opportunities presented by AI technologies.