Mercedes & NVIDIA Unveil L4-Ready S-Class Era

1/31/2026

Mercedes-Benz continues its 140-year legacy of automotive excellence by stepping boldly into the AI era. In a landmark collaboration with NVIDIA, the automaker has unveiled the new S-Class, a vehicle built on the NVIDIA DRIVE AV platform that introduces a Level 4-ready architecture designed specifically for trust and safety. The new S-Class, powered by MB.OS, integrates the NVIDIA DRIVE Hyperion architecture with full-stack NVIDIA DRIVE AV L4 software. This combination is engineered to support future robotaxi operations, prioritizing safety through the NVIDIA Halos system. By running end-to-end AI alongside classical driving stacks in parallel, the vehicle ensures reliable operation even in the most demanding conditions. https://blogs.nvidia.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/mb-s-class-2026-1536x1026.jpg Premium Mobility via Uber This launch also marks a significant evolution in chauffeur-style luxury. As part of NVIDIA’s strategic partnership with Uber, these autonomous Mercedes-Benz vehicles will be deployed on Uber’s global mobility network. This initiative showcases how legacy automakers and AI pioneers can collaborate to build smarter, safer vehicles without compromising the premium quality customers expect. "Mercedes-Benz has set the standard in the automotive market, building cars defined by exquisite craftsmanship and safety engineering," said Jensen Huang, founder and CEO of NVIDIA. "Five years ago, NVIDIA began working with Mercedes-Benz to help carry that legacy into the AI era." Engineered for the Unpredictable While traditional autonomous systems rely on rule-based responses, real-world driving involves infinite variables—from erratic pedestrians to sudden road debris. NVIDIA DRIVE AV addresses this by leveraging a full-stack automated driving system trained at scale on NVIDIA DGX systems. It is validated through high-fidelity simulation using NVIDIA Omniverse NuRec libraries and NVIDIA Cosmos world models. Unlike systems that merely react to patterns, NVIDIA DRIVE AV analyzes complex environments, evaluates multiple trajectory options, and selects the safest outcome in real time. Defense-in-Depth Architecture Achieving Level 4 autonomy requires more than simple redundancy; it demands resilience against hardware faults and unexpected behavior. The S-Class utilizes NVIDIA DRIVE Hyperion, a reference architecture built on "defense-in-depth" principles. This includes redundant compute to maintain operations if a processor fails, and multimodal sensor diversity—combining cameras, radar, and lidar—for robust perception. At the core of this intelligence is NVIDIA Alpamayo, a family of open models that allows the vehicle to drive smoothly and naturally, mimicking human reasoning to navigate complex scenarios. By merging these advanced AI capabilities with Mercedes-Benz’s rigorous safety standards, the new S-Class redefines what it means to be the "safest car" on the road, shifting the focus from crash protection to active accident prevention.