Mars Rover AI

NASA's Perseverance rover utilized generative artificial intelligence for route planning during its December 10, 2025, drive on the rim of Jezero Crater. The AI analyzed high-resolution orbital imagery and terrain-slope data to identify critical terrain features and generated a continuous path with waypoints.

The animation of the drive was created using the Caspian visualization tool and shows the rover's autonomous decision-making process. Pale blue lines depict the track of the rover's wheels, while black lines show the different path options considered by the rover.

The white terrain in the animation is a height map generated using data collected by the rover during the drive. A pale blue circle appearing near the end of the animation represents a waypoint.

For more information on the Perseverance rover, visit NASA's website.