The research group of Prof. Sergio Matteo Savaresi from the Department of Electronics, Information and Bioengineering, Politecnico di Milano coordinates the 1000 Miglia Autonomous Drive project, called 1000-MAD. The project is linked to the 1000 Miglia 2023 race, that embodies the history of world motoring and this year will be kicked-off by an autonomous driving car, symbol of the future.

1000-MAD represents the first experimentation in the world of autonomous vehicles on public roads, with an extension of more than 1,500 km and a time window of over 12 months. The initiative aims to increase the technical skills of Italian industry, to contribute to the development of sustainable mobility and to increase the public awareness of this technology.

The vehicle that will be used for the experimentation is the brand-new Maserati MC20 Cielo, an iconic and emotional super sport car that combines the best of modern technologies with the charm of Maserati's history. On this car the Politecnico di Milano has installed all the technological elements of a "robo-driver" (actuation systems, sensors, computers, communication systems, and all the software that implements the AI-driver algorithms), to put an Artificial Intelligence behind the wheel of the "Cielo".

The use of a Maserati as the base-vehicle of this project is also proof of the intense research collaboration that has existed for more than a decade between the Politecnico di Milano and Maserati in the field of electronic vehicle control & automation systems.

From 13 to 17 June, the Maserati MC20 Cielo will cross the entire route of the 1000 Miglia, tackling in "autonomous driving" mode some sections of it. But the participation in the 1000 Miglia 2023 is only the first step of the project “presentation”. When the 2023 edition of the “most beautiful race in the world” will be over, a year of intense development and experimental refinement of the A.I-driver technology will follow, in which the car will be trained on a route similar to that of the 1000 Miglia on municipal, provincial and state roads, and partly also motorway sections, with the ultimate goal of carrying out the entire route of the 1000 Miglia 2024 in autonomous mode.

To comply with the testing authorization requirements (D.M.70 "smart-roads"), the vehicle driven by the Politecnico di Milano A.I-driver must be constantly supervised by a human co-pilot. In the 1000 Miglia of 2023 the co-pilot will be exceptional: Matteo Marzotto, expert driver and member of the Board of Directors of 1000 Miglia S.r.l., with many experiences of participation in the historic 1000 Miglia. He will thus remember the 70th anniversary of his uncle Giannino's victory (1953 edition), in an ideal handover between past, present and future.