Meet the Romanian teen who built a self-driving car … for $4,000

By Nick Jaynes Published April 11, 2014

Last May, we reported how a 19-year-old Romanian teen, Ionut Budisteanu, designed and built a fully autonomous car for only $4,000, which won him a $75,000 scholarship from Intel.

Now Intel has released a video documenting the young man’s project.

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In the video, Budisteanu admits he’s not a good driver. Turns out, neither is his car. Out of 50 tests, the $4,000 autonomous car worked flawlessly 47 times … meaning it crashed three times.

Despite the less-than-perfect track record for Budisteanu car, it does give hope for those of us who are eager to see inexpensive self-driving technology make its way into the mass market.

Some driving purists might deride autonomous tech. We, though, are keen to text and relax behind the wheel without endangering anyone else on the road.

Nick Jaynes

Former Automotive Editor

Nick Jaynes is the Automotive Editor for Digital Trends. He developed a passion for writing about cars working his way…

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