Roborace, the driverless support series set to debut alongside Formula E during the 2016/2017 season, has officially unveiled its first ever car.
Created by chief design officer Daniel Simon, the ‘Robocar’ is the first racing machine designed to not accommodate a driver.
Simon has previously been a senior designer at Bugatti and is also known for his work on the films Tron: Legacy and Oblivion.
Roborace plans to race 20 drivers and 10 teams on the same tracks as Formula E, over a full championship season. It will "provide a competitive platform for the autonomous driving solutions".
"My goal was to create a vehicle that takes full advantage of the unusual opportunities of having no driver without ever compromising on beauty," Simon said on the car.
"Racing engineers and aerodynamicists have worked with me from the beginning to strike that balance. The Roborace is as much about competition as it is entertainment.
"Therefore – and quite unusual in today’s racing world – beauty was very high on our agenda and we work hard to merge the best performance with stunning styling.
"It was important to us that we generate substantial downforce without unnecessary parts cluttering the car to maintain a clean and iconic look.
"This is largely made possible by using the floor as the main aerodynamic device and we are currently developing active body parts that are more organic and seamless than solutions today."
Formula E CEO Alejandro Agag added: "Today is an historic day for motorsport, and the car industry in general. This first image of the Robocar, designed by Daniel Simon, represents a vision of what cars will be, a vision of our future.
"In Formula E we are proud to promote, together with pioneers like Denis Sverdlov and Daniel Simon, a revolution in the world of motorsport, a project that will change the future of mobility."
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