Aidoptation has received approval from Belgian federal and Flemish authorities to conduct fully autonomous Level 4 driving tests across 62 miles (100 km) of the E313 and E314 highways in the province of Limburg, at speeds up to the 75 mph (120 km/h) limit. The permit, issued to Aidoptation by the Federal Public Service Mobility and Transport (FOD) and the Flemish Agency for Roads and Traffic (AWV), marks what the company describes as the first time a Level 4 fully autonomous driving system will be tested at highway speeds on public roads in the European Union.
Highlights
- The permit covers 62 miles (100 km) of the E313 and E314 highways in Limburg, with testing at speeds up to 75 mph (120 km/h).
- Aidoptation says this is the first Level 4 highway-speed testing on public roads in the EU, distinct from the Level 2 ADAS programs automakers have tested in Europe.
- The test vehicle is a Maserati GranTurismo Folgore electric platform equipped with lidar, radar, camera sensors, and robotics hardware.
- The company spent a year testing at Ford Lommel Proving Grounds, the DronePort runway, Circuit of Spa-Francorchamps, and Circuit Zolder before securing the permit.
Why Test Level 4 at Highway Speeds?
Level 4 is defined within the industry as autonomous driving capable of performing all driving tasks and monitoring the environment without human intervention. Aidoptation draws a distinction between this level of autonomy and the Advanced Driver Assistance Systems that several OEMs have tested in the European Union, including Tesla FSD, which is classified as Level 2, requires constant driver supervision, and leaves the human driver legally liable for the vehicle’s actions.
The company frames the permit as a step in its mission to address the most severe category of road accidents: high-speed crashes, where at 75 mph (120 km/h) a vehicle covers more than 164 feet (50 meters) in the 1.5 seconds it takes an average driver to react. Accidents at those speeds are rare but often result in death or severe injury, roadway closures, and property and infrastructure losses. Safely managing obstacles and crash-avoidance maneuvers — the “edge cases” of highway driving — remains a key step toward unlocking the full potential of autonomous driving, according to the company.
“Being the first to test fully autonomous Level 4 technology on EU highways is a milestone moment for Aidoptation, the Belgian innovation ecosystem, and the broader autonomous driving industry. Autonomous driving has enormous potential to improve safety and mobility, but commercial adoption will depend on demonstrating safe performance in the most demanding highway scenarios. Testing on public highways will generate invaluable real-world data, validate our technology, and advance our mission of reducing fatalities and making highways safer for everyone.” – Paul Mitchell, CEO of Aidoptation
Maserati GranTurismo Folgore Test Platform
Testing will be conducted on a Maserati GranTurismo Folgore electric vehicle that Aidoptation has equipped with lidar, radar, and camera sensors, along with robotics hardware, to enable full autonomous driving at highway speeds.
Testing on public highways is a critical step in developing safe and reliable autonomous driving systems, and the Belgian permit lets Aidoptation validate its technology in real-world traffic, complementing ongoing work at proving grounds and tracks. Testing will follow a phased approach under strict operational and safety protocols agreed with Belgian authorities, including a human safety driver who can take control of the vehicle at any time. The project is insured by Ethias, whose CEO, Philippe Lallemand, said the insurer invests in Aidoptation because its technology has the potential to make roads safer and prevent casualties while building Belgian economic strength in advanced mobility.
EdgeDrive: Built for 120 km/h and Above
Aidoptation was founded in 2025 as a commercial spin-off of the Indy Autonomous Challenge (IAC), the US-based autonomous racing competition. The company’s engineering team set the world autonomous speed record of 197.7 mph (318 km/h) at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida using a production Maserati MC20 with no human driver on board.
Its first commercial product, EdgeDrive, is a Level 4 autonomous driving platform built specifically for highway operation at speeds of 75 mph (120 km/h) and above where limits allow. The company says EdgeDrive uses first-principles-based deterministic models — with no AI involved in decision-making — to handle emergency maneuvers, sudden obstacle avoidance, and high-speed hazard response, making driving results fully traceable and auditable for regulators and insurers. Aidoptation plans to offer EdgeDrive as a separate or integrated safety module to automotive OEMs and robotaxi customers seeking to expand the Operational Design Domain (ODD) of Level 3 and Level 4 vehicles to highways.
Flemish Mobility Minister Annick De Ridder framed the permit as a signal of the region’s ambitions: “Autonomous driving is no longer science fiction. Around the world, we are reaching a tipping point, and Flanders should not merely follow; it should lead. We have the expertise, the companies, and the ambition to be at the forefront. The fact that Aidoptation can now conduct testing on the E313 and E314 motorways demonstrates that Flanders is a place where innovation does not remain confined to ideas, but finds its way into real-world application.”
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