The Globe and Mail reports in its Monday, Sept. 4, edition that Canadian companies could be serious contenders in the global self-driving-vehicle race, as Magna International debuts its own autonomous technology. A Canadian Press dispatch to The Globe reports that Magna launched its Max4 autonomous driving platform last week into a market that is gaining interest from most major automakers, as well as technology firms such as Google, Apple and Intel. Magna's addition to the race focuses on making the technology components that drive autonomous vehicles nearly invisible. Canada's contributions put the country's entrants -- including former tech darling Blackberry -- in a strong position to win a slice of the global market, says Canadian Automated Vehicles Centre of Excellence chief technology officer Paul Godsmark. He says, "The more we do now, the more government supports the development of technology companies, the bigger our slice of the pie will be." Canada may have been behind the curve a few years ago, but participation by Magna, Blackberry QNX, General Motors and Uber Technologies in this country suggests that Canadian talent is being tapped to develop the nascent sector.