Perceptive Automata, LLC

Perceptive Automata, LLC was a privately held company founded in 2014 (or 2015/2016 depending on the source) and headquartered in Somerville, Massachusetts, with an office in Boston. The company focused on developing artificial intelligence to understand and predict human behavior for autonomous vehicles and robotics. Perceptive Automata raised a total of $20 million in funding, including a $16 million Series A round in 2018 with investors such as Jazz Venture Partners, Toyota AI Ventures, and Hyundai Motor Company. However, the company ceased operations in August 2022 after failing to secure Series B funding, with its CEO attempting to sell its intellectual property.

Perceptive Automata's core product was "State of Mind AI" (SOMAI), a software-based system designed to give autonomous vehicles the ability to understand human intentions and awareness. This technology utilized behavioral science, neuroscience, computer vision, and deep learning models to predict human behavior, such as a pedestrian's intent to cross a road or a cyclist's intention to turn. The software was intended to integrate with existing advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS) and autonomous driving stacks to enable safer and smoother navigation in human-dominated environments.

In terms of patent litigation, Perceptive Automata, LLC has been involved in two tracked cases. They were the plaintiff in Perceptive Automata, LLC v. Tesla, Inc. in the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas, Midland-Odessa Division. This case involved assertions against Tesla's Full Self-Driving (FSD) software and hardware systems, specifically concerning five U.S. patents related to AI-based human perception and prediction technology. Perceptive Automata also appeared as a defendant in a related case initiated by Tesla, Inc. before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB). The district court case was voluntarily dismissed by Perceptive Automata without prejudice, meaning they retain the right to refile the claims in the future. The patents asserted in the case against Tesla include US11126889B2, US10614344B2, US11753046B2, US11467579B2, and US11520346B2.