With the introduction of the concept of the autonomous car there has been a great response by engineers and scientists that have been developing ideas and actual prototypes to the world of science. The government has also taken notice as well. With the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), the research and development section of the Department of Defense (DoD). DARPA has increased visibility of the autonomous car by sending out a challenge to all organizations and schools to compete with their own built robotic cars.

The challenge is aimed at “individuals from industry, the R&D community, universities, and inventors” (DARPA, 2009). The point of the Grand Challenge, as it is called, is to “draw attention to the technology issues associated with autonomous vehicles and to generate breakthroughs in performance. DARPA's mission is to develop transformational technologies to give our armed forces a decisive edge…Congress and the Department of Defense have envisioned unmanned vehicles teamed with people to create efficient, integrated, agile and cost-effective forces that will reduce the risk to American life. The Grand Challenge was initiated in support of this vision, with the goal of demonstrating a fully autonomous vehicle able to complete a challenging desert course in less than 10 hours.” (DARPA, 2009) All of these challenges lead to a $2 million cash prize to the winners of this Grand Challenge.