The DRIVE AI Consortium
DRIVE AI, part of UC Berkeley’s Institute of Transportation Studies (ITS), is a pre-competitive research consortium uniting industry, government, and academia to advance connected, electrified, and autonomous systems. Based at Berkeley’s Richmond Field Station (RFS) - a 175-acre living lab for AI-enabled mobility and energy systems - DRIVE AI accelerates responsible AI adoption in transportation through shared data, shared infrastructure, and shared innovation, providing a neutral platform where partners can test, validate, and deploy the technologies shaping the future of mobility.
Core Research & Innovation Pillars
Membership & Partnership Opportunities
DRIVE AI is designed as a pre-competitive collaboration platform, enabling companies, agencies, and researchers to shape the future of connected and autonomous mobility together. Members gain early access to Berkeley research, talent, and facilities - while helping define the questions that drive the next wave of innovation.
Through annual memberships, partners can:
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Collaborate on applied research in AVs, V2X, and electrification.
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Access testbeds and digital-twin infrastructure at Berkeley’s Richmond Field Station.
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Engage faculty and students through workshops, internships, and sponsored projects.
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Showcase technologies during DRIVE AI demo days and industry forums.
Membership levels range from foundational collaborators to Platinum Steering Partners, offering increasing access to facilities, engineering support, and research governance. Each partnership helps expand Berkeley’s shared infrastructure for safe, sustainable, and AI-enabled transportation.
Testbeds & Collaboration at RFS
Located just six miles from UC Berkeley’s main campus, the Richmond Field Station (RFS) is the physical home of DRIVE AI - a 175-acre applied research campus for connected, electrified, and autonomous systems.
RFS brings together an AV test track, V2X corridors, drone testing zones, charging and microgrid infrastructure, and open-air labs that allow partners to move rapidly from concept to deployment. The site also includes shared offices, coworking areas, and a makerspace where researchers, startups, and corporate teams prototype, test, and refine emerging mobility technologies side by side.
As a living laboratory, RFS links research, policy, and real-world infrastructure, enabling DRIVE AI members to demonstrate technologies, host pilots, and connect directly with Berkeley’s engineering and data-science expertise.
Events & Engagement
Each year, DRIVE AI convenes leaders from academia, industry, and government to explore breakthroughs in connected, electrified, and autonomous mobility. This October, Berkeley will host the inaugural DRIVE AI Forum and Demo Day - a two-day gathering designed to connect ideas with implementation. The forum is the best way to experience Berkeley’s applied research ecosystem, and to see firsthand how DRIVE AI is turning collaboration into deployment.
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October 23 - AI Mobility Workshop: Keynotes, panels, and working sessions on AI in transportation, data infrastructure, and workforce development.
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October 24 - DRIVE AI Demo Day: Guided tours, live demonstrations, and technology showcases across AV, V2X, and electrification testbeds.
Our Legacy: ITS Berkeley
For more than 75 years, UC Berkeley’s Institute of Transportation Studies has led global advances in transportation technology, research, policy, and deployment. ITS brings together nine departments and more than a dozen world-class centers shaping the systems we rely on today and tomorrow - including Partners for Advanced Transportation Technology (PATH), pioneers in automated vehicles and connected corridors; Berkeley DeepDrive (BDD), advancing AI and computer vision for autonomous driving; the Transportation Sustainability Research Center (TSRC), leaders in shared mobility and electrification; SafeTREC, improving road safety through data-driven policy; NEXTOR, modeling aviation operations for the FAA; and the UC Pavement Research Center (UCPRC) and Tech Transfer Program, translating innovation into practice.
This legacy of innovation provides the foundation for DRIVE AI. As AI transforms transportation, coordination across sectors is essential. DRIVE AI extends Berkeley’s tradition of research-to-real-world impact, creating the collaborative platform that turns innovation into safe, scalable deployment.