Pentagon officials are reviewing the tape but believe Stanley, a robotic vehicle designed by a team from Stanford University, won the Grand Challenge race.
The race is part of an attempt by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency to get non-governmental researchers to develop new technology, The New York Times reports.
DARPA developed the Predator drone, the stealth fighter and the precursor to the Internet, the Arpanet.
Twenty-three teams designed robotic vehicles to compete for the $2 million prize, but only three could finish the 132-mile course through the Nevada desert.
Stanford's vehicle, a retrofitted Volkswagen Touareg, and a Hummer and a Humvee from Carnegie Mellon University crossed the finish line within two minutes of each other.
None of the 15 contestants in the first Grand Challenge in March 2004 finished that race.
© Copyright 2005 by United Press International
