Sourcing the Future of In-Car Technology

The future of mobility is undoubtedly one of the hottest topics of 2021. COVID-19 accelerated an already rapid disruption fueled by electrification & autonomy, changing consumer habits, and connectivity & digitization. While each of these areas are massive opportunities independently, at Axis Innovation we’ve been particularly interested in how these trends merge together to change the in-car experience. How are OEM’s and Tier 1 suppliers addressing the huge market opportunities created by digitization? What are tech companies and startups doing to create the next generation of services and experiences for consumers and for the auto companies?

 

In early 2020, we put together our first In-Car Report - a 30 page white paper analyzing the history, trends, challenges, and opportunities of the in-car experience. Since then, not a week goes by without a major announcement innovation by a major automotive corporation or startup funding related to digital services. A few of the major ones just from the start of 2021:

 

• January: QUALCOMM unveils new designs for 4G and 5G platforms for connected vehicles 

• January: Otonomo, Israeli startup building the global platform for connected car data, announces plans to go public via SPAC, valuing the company at $1.4 Billion. 

• February: Ford and Google announce strategic partnership to accelerate auto innovation and reinvent the connected vehicle experience

• February: Apple is reportedly in negotiations with Hyundai-Kia to create the Apple Car, rumored to be in production by 2024. 

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These trends are only going to continue, as the vehicles today are arriving fully connected and with consumers expecting to have the best digital services available to them. At Axis Innovation, we’re increasing our work in mobility and adapting to “the new normal” of virtual events, scouting, and partnership work. Nearly every month we’ve had a major event or project and mobility, with 2 more coming up: 

•  Ford Make it Driveable event (October 2020) After organizing the Make it Driveable challenge physically every year since 2014, we created a brand new virtual event platform customized for corporate-startup engagement. 30 startups were selected from across Europe to spend a day and a half networking, pitching, and working with 20 Ford executives from around the world. 

• Axis DICE (Digital In-Car Experience) November 2020:  the first event to focus on startup and corporate innovation of the in-car experience. 15 startups pitched their cutting edge solutions across HMI (Human-Machine Interface) technology, apps & experiences, in-cabin monitoring and data. The tech was especially amazing - the startups hold more than 70 patents! Panelists from Ford, BMW, FCA, Continental, Volkswagen, Volvo, Amazon Alexa Auto, Faurecia, Aptiv, and many others shared their insights into the topics, while we moderated each session to focus on how startups and auto corporations can work together and create synergistic solutions. For a full event recap, click here to download our event summary report and watch the sessions online here.

• Future Day by the Camp / Tryg Insurance (Copenhagen) December 2020): A unique series of events focused on the future of mobility from the perspective of insurance led by Tryg, one of the largest insurers in the Nordic region. At this event, I was invited to speak about the changing landscape of the in-car experience and how OEM’s and startups are collaborating, and the ecosystems being developed around insurance. 

• Mobility Pioneer (Feb 2021): Based in Las Vegas, this event will bring together together local and international governments, automotive companies, investors, and startups focused on smart city and mobility innovation. 
  >> Registration is still open - click here to get the few remaining tickets!
   

• Axis Tel Aviv (March 2021): Our flagship annual conference organized for the past 8 years. This year, mobility is one of our core themes and we are excited to host Ola Kallenius, CEO and Chairman of the Board of Mercedes-Benz as our keynote speaker. 
  >> Click here to see the full agenda for Axis Tel Aviv and use code “mobility20” for 20% off ticket registration!

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Whether you are a startup, corporate, tech company, or ecosystem member passionate about mobility, I believe there is no more exciting time to be in this industry. We look forward to seeing you at our next events!