Bridgestone Partners with Indy Autonomous Challenge to Help Accelerate the Future of Mobility

Bridgestone Partners with Indy Autonomous Challenge to Help Accelerate the Future of Mobility

• Bridgestone to serve as exclusive tyre supplier for the world’s first head-to-head, high-speed autonomous race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway®.
• Event will include various stages of on-track activity before culminating with historic race October 23, 2021.
• Partnership advances Bridgestone’s evolution to become a global leader in sustainable mobility and advanced solutions.

Bridgestone has formed a partnership with the Indy Autonomous Challenge (IAC), a global competition among university teams to programme a modified Dallara IL-15 racecar and compete in the world’s first autonomous high-speed, head-to-head race at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway® (IMS).

Bridgestone will serve as the exclusive tyre supplier for the event, which is scheduled for October 23, 2021, working closely with the IAC and its participating teams on a collective vision to push the boundaries of self-driving car technology - and increase public awareness of the impact that automation can have on society.

This mission closely aligns with Bridgestone’s strategic shift to evolve its focus beyond tyres to provide sustainable mobility and advanced solutions that create new value for its customers and society.

“Bridgestone is committed to collaborating with innovative partners to pioneer active, intelligent and digitally-integrated technologies that improve the way people move, live, work and play,” said Paolo Ferrari, president and CEO, Bridgestone Americas.

“The Indy Autonomous Challenge is a ground-breaking event bringing young engineering minds and industry leaders together to deliver the next generation of autonomous technology, and Bridgestone is proud to be part of this effort to move the world ahead.”

In combination with its Firestone brand, Bridgestone has an unrivalled history of motorsports success at IMS that dates back more than a century to the inaugural Indianapolis 500® in 1911. Firestone has been the Official Tyre of the Indy 500® since 2002 and has 71 wins in the iconic race – more than twice as many as all other tyre manufacturers combined. Bridgestone Potenza tyres were also trusted by Formula 1 drivers from 2000 to 2007. Bridgestone will leverage its extensive knowledge of the track and its vast racing experience in designing new race tyres that will be supplied to teams in the IAC in 2021.

"The Indy Autonomous Challenge is about innovation to further technical excellence and inspiration to our university competitors, " said Paul Mitchell, President and CEO of Energy Systems Network.

"We are thrilled to welcome Bridgestone, a global company, who shares that passion for success."

In alignment with its ‘Our Way to Serve’ global corporate social responsibility commitment, Bridgestone continues to support events that drive sustainable innovation in mobility while helping to develop future engineering talent. In addition to its partnership with the IAC, the company has served as title sponsor and tyre supplier for the Bridgestone World Solar Challenge since 2013 and recently extended its agreement with the world’s foremost solar car race through 2030. The IAC schedule will include race simulations and on-track practice sessions at IMS in 2021 leading up to the final race in October.

More information can be found at www.indyautonomouschallenge.com.

For more information about this press release, or if you have any more questions, please call Ben Smallman at Ben Smallman PR on 07833 463195 or email ben@bensmallmanpr.com

About Bridgestone in Europe, Russia, Middle East, India and Africa (EMIA)

For almost 90 years, we've been providing the confidence to get people and goods where they need to go as conveniently as possible, without interruption. Today, in a fast-changing world, we’re evolving to provide real solutions to the real problems our customers face. This is why Bridgestone EMIA is rapidly transforming from a premium tyre producer into a mobility solutions leader. We’re pioneering cutting-edge products and solutions with some of the industry’s most advanced factories, world-beating technologies and coveted partnerships. As our transformation journey continues, we’re working to shape the future of mobility.

For more information about Bridgestone in EMIA, please visit www.bridgestone-emia.com and www.bridgestonenewsroom.eu. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and LinkedIn.