Open Source Autonomous Driving Pioneer Tier IV Signs Strategic Partnership with Imaging ODM Leader Ability Enterprise

To Co-Develop and Supply High-Performance Automotive Cameras for Autoware-Based Applications

Japan’s autonomous driving technology pioneer Tier IV, developer of the world’s first open-source self-driving software Autoware, has signed a strategic Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Taiwanese imaging ODM leader Ability Enterprise. The partnership will focus on the joint development, manufacturing, and global sales of high-quality in-vehicle cameras for autonomous driving and ADAS applications.

Since 2018, Ability Enterprise has expanded from traditional imaging ODM into the automotive market and has been collaborating with several Tier 1 suppliers. Leveraging its strength in optical-electronics integration, Ability now partners with Tier IV to bring advanced, tested camera solutions to the global self-driving ecosystem.

Prototypes jointly developed by Tier IV and Ability have already been integrated into Tier IV’s autonomous test vehicles, showing exceptional performance in object detection and recognition. These products are planned to be commercially available starting 2022 and will serve a wide range of use cases beyond self-driving—such as robotics and smart surveillance.

“As the demand for AI-driven perception systems increases, our collaboration aims to offer reliable, high-precision imaging solutions that meet OEM-level expectations,” said representatives from both companies. “This partnership integrates Tier IV’s Autoware platform with Ability’s imaging expertise to accelerate the commercialization and adoption of autonomous driving technologies.”

Looking forward, both parties will refine their products to meet automotive-grade specifications and target integration into OEM production pipelines, helping democratize access to high-performance automotive cameras previously restricted to Tier 1 or OEM ecosystems.

Autoware（※1）
Autoware is an open-source autonomous driving software based on Linux and ROS.
(Autoware is a trademark of the Autoware Foundation)