Artificial intelligence is the hottest thing in technology in years and the company arguably benefiting the most from the emergent AI industry is Nvidia Corp., which has seen its market cap pass $1 trillion.

While services like OpenAI LP’s ChatGPT may be getting most of the headlines, the application of AI is far broader than smart large language model-based chatbots alone. Today Nvidia has detailed a novel use for AI: building a self-driving skate park.

Developed by Kirk Kaiser, a software engineer and skateboard enthusiast using the Nvidia Jetson platform, the self-driving skate park is being designed to move alongside a skater. Kaiser is using the Nvidia Jetson Nano Developer Kit and the latest Jetson Orin Nano Developer Kit to achieve this.

The autonomous skate park involves an electric platform that can elevate a ramp, make it level with the ground and is steerable via a Bluetooth-connected PS4 controller. Kaiser is collecting data to train AI models that will allow the platform to recognize streets and obstacles and, eventually, become fully autonomous.

The project takes advantage of the Nvidia Jetson platform for its compatibility with other development platforms and onboard graphics processing unit. Kaiser also uses Robot Operating System repositories through the Nvidia Isaac platform for accelerated, AI-powered robotics.

In addition to the skate ramp, Kaiser has also used the Nvidia Jetson platform for other projects, including training an AI model to control lights with human gestures and creating an AI-powered bird-watching camera.

Although autonomous skate ramps are likely not the next big thing in skateboarding or anything for that matter, Nvidia notes that Kaiser’s work represents an interesting application of Nvidia’s AI and edge computing technologies to recreational and creative projects. In doing so, it illustrates the accessibility and versatility of these tools for individual makers and developers.

The Nvidia Jetson Orin Nano platform used by Kaiser was launched by Nvidia in September. The smallest and most lightweight member of the Jetson family, Orin Nano can deliver up to 40 trillion operations per second of AI performance.

Photo and GIF: Nvidia