Generating lane segments using embeddings for autonomous vehicle navigation

A method of generating pathways for autonomously navigating through an environment, comprising:

• identifying, by one or more processors, a tensor comprising a plurality of encodings derived from sensor data from an ego and map data defining a topology of an environment surrounding the ego;
• determining, by the one or more processors, by applying at least a first portion of the plurality of encodings to a machine learning (ML) model, a first index value defining a point within a first plurality of points of a first grid defined over the environment;
• determining, by the one or more processors, by applying at least a second portion of the plurality of encodings and the first index value to the ML model, a second index value defining the point within a second plurality of points of a second grid within a subset of the first plurality of points of the first grid;
• generating, by the one or more processors, a token for at least one of a plurality of pathways through the environment based on the first index value and the second index value for the point;
• and
• storing, by the one or more processors, a graph to include the token to be used to autonomously navigate the ego through the environment via one or more of the plurality of pathways.