Tern AI’s low-cost GPS alternatives actually work
When the GPS got malfunctioning and missed the exit on the highway, we all went through that moment of frustration. team Tears you havesays they are building a low-cost GPS alternative. He says this is because current technology is limited by its dependence on satellite positioning.
Tern AI says it found a way to find the vehicle’s location using only map information and existing sensor data from the vehicle. The company’s pitch: It’s a cheap system that doesn’t require any additional expensive sensors.
With SXSWthe Austin-based startup has demonstrated that it can “derive a location from nothing” exclusively for TechCrunch.
“There’s no triangulation, satellites, wifi, nothing. Co-founder and president Brett Harrison told TechCrunch that Cyrus Behroozi, senior software developer at Tern, loaded a demo for the iPhone. “As we move away from the technology-limiting triangulation base, it really changes the game as we have the ability to make that grid perfect.”
Harrison says this breakthrough is important for several reasons. From a commercial standpoint, companies relying on GPS, including GPS, will reach the delivery company, but with flaws in GPS positioning, they lose time, money and gas every time the driver needs to double back.
More importantly, most important systems such as aviation for disaster response to precision agriculture rely on GPS. Foreign enemies already demonstrate what they can do SPOOF GPS signalcould have devastating effects on both the economy and national security.
The US shows it wants to prioritize GPS alternatives. During his first term, President Donald Trump signed Presidential Order To reduce dependency on a single source of PNT (positioning, navigation, timing) services, such as GPS. there is Several other initiatives Direct agencies such as the Department of Defense and the National Security Council to ensure resilient PNT by testing and integrating non-GPS technologies.
“Deepseek has appeared I said it would cost a lot That should be done by US$6 million to do what is needed (Openai, humanity, and other AI companies),” Harrison said. “It took the government billions and decades to move that dot across the map in real time in a vehicle. It was done for less than $2 million.”
Terns came out of stealth in February 2024 and announced the announcement $4.4 million seed round A few months later. This is a quick turnaround to achieve the type of positioning we experienced at SXSW this week.
Testing Austin Tern System
To begin the demonstration, Behroozi connected the 2019 Honda Civic to the mobile phone via Bluetooth, allowing the Tern application to draw data from existing sensors in the vehicle. He said that from 2009 onwards Tern’s technology could be integrated directly into the vehicle model year.
Normally Tern would manually set positions to speed things up, but for the demo, the team wanted a “cold start.” Because Fehroozi turned off the location service on his mobile phone, the intelligent terry system only had a 500 square miles boundary cache map around Austin and vehicle sensors.
As the car drove, the system picked up road data and worked towards “convergence.” It took about 10 minutes for the system to reach full convergence from a cold start, but Harrison generally guaranteed it would take about 1-2 minutes if there was a starting point. What’s more, we were stuck with a bit of traffic, which slowed things down, Ferouge added.
Harrison said the tern system can also localize vehicles to parking garages, tunnels and mountains where GPS is struggling. Harrison didn’t explain exactly how the information was “unique.”
After the system reached full convergence, we drove for a few more minutes and I saw it steadily track the precise movements in a way that seemed as good as GPS. It became more clear when we ran to downtown Austin. There, my Google regularly misunderstood me throughout the week as I navigated through urban streets dotted with towering buildings.
Harrison said “Tern’s system is also safe from a privacy standpoint, as it uses GPS, “if someone knows your ID, you can always find you.”
“Our system is a totally closed loop,” he said. “Now we’re not ejecting anything. It independently derives its own position (via edge computing), so there’s no external touchpoint.”
Built for scaling
“We set the company and solution to scalable from the start. Looking at that Waymo car and all the embedded hardware, we don’t know we’ll go to Nissan Sentra anytime soon. That’s just too expensive,” Harrison said. Waymo-Uber Robotaxi.
“At the manufacturer level, if (tern) is implemented within the infotainment system, it’s just software Download, very scalable. Every new vehicle has the required sensor data. Map data is already present in all providers. It’s very easy. ”
Tern’s potential customers could be anyone from Google to Uber, from automakers to mobile phone makers. Harrison said the startup is open to the growth of the company as well as acquisitions.
“The main thing is to put this into the hands of the economy, with the emergence of threats and technologies that have not achieved the maximum potential due to the limitations of triangulation,” Harrison said.
He noted that Terns are exploring possibilities with the government. The startup recently received a contract award from the US Department of Transportation after demonstrating its technology along with nine other companies around the world.
“We want to show the government what is possible with American innovation right now,” Harrison said.