DARPA reinstates Grand Challenge prize money, millions at stake

We totally heart DARPA (the folks who brought you the internet!), given all the sweet research that it funds. As such, our hearts sunk when Congress dropped the prize for DARPA'S 2007 Grand Challenge to nil back in October. But the Grand Challenge has just gotten a little sweeter, since Congress has since reinstated the prize money to $3.5 million, split three ways, (including amongst the Team B competitors): the winning team will get $2 million, the second place $1 million, and third place a cool half million clams, or bones, or whatever you call them. As you probably know, the 2007 Grand Challenge will be a 60-mile urban course, which means that the cars will have to navigate themselves through an unnamed city (or section of a city) somewhere in the Western US. Of course, this prize money isn't going to do much for offsetting the cost of such a large project, but it'll surely buy a lot of champagne at the victory party. [Warning: PDF link]

[Via Slashdot and CNET]

[HyperCollider @ Dec 11th 2006 7:52AM]

Darpa did not invent the internet! CERN did...

[Ray L @ Dec 11th 2006 8:23AM]

An EM-50!! Now that is one sweet ride!

[octium @ Dec 11th 2006 8:53AM]

ARPANET is generally considered the origins of what is now the internet. an argument can be made that cern did in fact create the "world wide web" as we know it (html was created within the ENQUIRE program) however the backbone of internet technology is tcp/ip, a darpa creation which cern adopted in the mid 80s to create CERNET. the internet and the world wide web are two entirely different things. you can be using the internet without using the world wide web. online multiplayer games are an example of this.

in any case its nice to see the prize money come back to the grand challenge, even though its really a drop in the bucket compared to the actual costs of completing the challenge itself.

[Dave @ Dec 11th 2006 9:18AM]

Darpa DID invent the internet - CERN invented the web browser. The internet was there a long time before the browser...

I wouldn't "heart" DARPA too much. When Skynet becomes self aware and the Terminator shows up at your door thanks to decades of "research" that's turned toward the military, you won't be nearly so cheery. Sure there are peaceful spin-offs from their research, but there is a very deadly primary goal.

[Ian Jardine @ Dec 11th 2006 10:20AM]

DARPA invented the "internet".
Sir Tim invented the Browser and CERN endorsed and pushed it.
All three played a huge part in developing and shaping what we use today.

[Mark @ Dec 11th 2006 9:08AM]

Im with Ray-L. Huge pop for the "Urban Assault vehicle."

You know who would love this? Russell!

[oo7ev @ Dec 11th 2006 9:44AM]

Thank you for an early morning Big Lebowski reference!

This agression will not stand ...man.

[Jim @ Dec 11th 2006 10:46AM]

"C'mon, it's Czechoslovakia. We zip in, we pick 'em up, we zip right out again. We're not going to Moscow. It's Czechoslovakia. It's like we're going into WISCONSIN."

"Well I got the sh*t kicked out of me in Wisconsin once. Forget it!"

[Conjecture McSpeculate @ Dec 11th 2006 7:47PM]

I wish someone would enter the UAV into DARPA, even if it drives into a ditch in the first 10 yards.

[Stephen @ Dec 11th 2006 11:56AM]

nice big lebowski reference up there :)

[veeten @ Dec 11th 2006 12:23PM]

I'm a Little Lebowski Urban Achiever. Are you?

[BrandonLehman @ Dec 11th 2006 3:31PM]

You guys are silly. Everyone knows Al Gore invented the inter-webber-tube.... Seriously.... duh. Just duh.