Uber has announced a major initiative to advance its autonomous vehicle technology by deploying 500 specially equipped data collection cars across global roads this year. According to a TechCrunch report, these vehicles will gather real-world driving information to support Uber’s self-driving technology partners. The company has developed a customized version of the Hyundai Ioniq 5 electric car fitted with numerous sensors, including 14 cameras, 8 lidar units, and 9 radar systems.

Uber stated that the fleet is expected to collect data covering about two million miles each month. The company aims to have at least 50 of these vehicles operational by the coming summer. The collected data will not only be stored but also analyzed to train autonomous driving software, which Uber believes will make robotaxi technology more advanced and reliable.

Uber’s broader goal is to build the world’s most diverse autonomous driving database, incorporating real experiences from different countries, cities, and environments. Its current partners in autonomous vehicle development include Waymo, WeRide, and Avride.