Software is driving the top five trends in automotive tech in 2022. Gartner predicts that 70% of vehicles sold by 2028 will use the Android automotive operating system, up from less than 1% today.
While much of the excitement surrounds new content and home streaming services enabled by connected software, automakers are also exploring the transformative potential of over-the-air (OTA) updates.
The revolution is software-driven
With over 100 million lines of code in the average connected vehicle, the ability to deliver updates – and improvements – remotely from the cloud is revolutionising everything from development cycles to business models and customer relationships.
Gone are the days when the relationship between automakers and customers ends at the dealership. As Cubic3 CEO, Barry Napier explains:
People will want customised features over the lifecycle of a vehicle, they’ll buy a car and wish it had some premium features. Software-defined vehicle development and connectivity make that possible – and allow automakers to get their innovations out there faster than ever before.
From updateable experience to long-term relationship
But it’s not just about premium features and services. As OTA updates become routine for manufacturers, the idea that a vehicle is the best the day it’s purchased is set to change – along with the traditional customer lifecycle. OTA updates can transform the customer-automaker relationship, making it a lot more direct and ongoing. This relationship can extend far beyond the first owner of a vehicle. In a world where more sustainable vehicles will spend a lot longer in circulation, this is a genuinely transformative development.
As James Towle of Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) shared at the Financial Times’ Future of the Car conference, OTA is evolving from merely “fixing problems” to providing ongoing opportunities for manufacturers to interact directly with customers, offering updateable experiences. “Rather than talking exclusively about subscriptions and driving revenue, we can actually provide a product and a service that can be direct to our customer base and improve that experience over time.”
Performance-as-a-service: the criticality of connectivity
As vehicles become updateable devices, manufacturers like Volkswagen are leveraging the power of swarm data – using fleet data from other vehicles to continuously upgrade their models. Former VW chief Herbert Diess described the ability to continuously modify vehicles and interact with customers on software upgrades as a significant shift for automakers. Stellantis CSO Yves Bonnefont told the Future of the Car delegates that his company performed 7 million OTA updates in 2021, expecting that to increase to more than 100 million in 2026. “What we want to do is continuously upgrade those vehicles,” he said.
For this to really work, network reliability is critical – and will underpin both the internal and external car experience. “These kinds of capabilities will allow auto manufacturers to do things they never imagined,” says Towle, “especially in an EV environment, because that vehicle will be on the road a million miles and need to be constantly on, updated and connected to incredibly reliable connectivity, to continually get better than the day they came off the production line. Connectivity is the underpinning of the future of the car.”
Partnering for success
It’s therefore no surprise that mainstream tech companies are entering the market. The challenge for manufacturers is how to leverage their historic expertise, brand, and customer loyalty while retaining ownership of the customer experience. As we’ve seen, manufacturers are integrating software companies or forming partnerships. As Diess has said, “You can’t acquire all this knowledge.” Stellantis’ Bonnefont has pointed to “decisive partnerships” with companies like Amazon and Foxconn as a key part of that company’s strategy to “accelerate as we grow our own skills.”
The theme of partnership was strong at this year’s Mobile World Congress too, indicating an ongoing recognition that the way we solve challenges from sustainability to autonomy, infotainment and connectivity is through developing an ecosystem. There’s a cultural and mindset shift underway, with exciting implications for how we evolve products and technologies.
Connected software driving performance
Cubic3’s connected software and analytics solutions give automakers, agritech and transport innovators the tools they need to shape the future. We partner with some of the world’s leading brands to help them realise their vision for a software-defined future.
