What role is Elektrobit playing in the automotive space and what software services are you offering to your customers?
M.A.: Elektrobit is a pure-play software company with a global footprint spanning over three regions (America, Europe and Asia Pacific). We have a sizable team of over 4,000 employees, and our software powers 600 million vehicles, which equates to approximately two thirds of the total global fleet. We are providing out-of-the-box products and engineering services, tailored to the specific needs of our customers, across various domains such as vehicle infrastructure, automated driving, connectivity, safety and security and user experience. Through non-differentiating software solutions, we allow OEMs to reuse and replicate our know-how, thus saving development costs and implementing features in a faster and more reliable manner. In addition, we also offer differentiating software supporting the individual automotive brand experience as users interact with the unique features of each brand’s infotainment package.
Software seems to be the driving force of the revolution that is now taking the auto market by storm; how did we get here?
M.A.: Software has been improving little by little until it became the single most complex component under the hood of a car. We are now at a point where we need to find the best ways to design and repurpose all the myriad software solutions that we have lying around, and this can only be done by having software and hardware cycles run independently of one another. Drivers are seeking to extend their smartphone user experience into their cars so that they can enjoy the same ecosystem in a car that they have become so accustomed to using their phone. Unlike phones that are far easier to update over the air, a vehicle requires more real time connectivity, higher network performance and greater security. Safety regulations in the automotive space are much tighter for obvious reasons, so turning cars into data centers on wheels requires far more time and testing. As software providers, we have a duty of care concerning human lives as the consequences of an automotive system failure are far greater than your smartphone going off line for a while.
C.R.: Over fifty electronic control units (ECUs) are typically installed within the hardware architecture of a car so we need to tackle the complexity of this network in the most efficient manner possible. Moreover, as software developers we are asked to translate and simplify this complexity so that OEMs can deploy these solutions in the most straightforward way imaginable.
How are you managing to stay ahead of the trends and differentiate yourselves from other software companies on the market?
M.A.:
We are among the few software companies offering services to all three segments of the automotive market: established OEMs, non-legacy manufacturers (such as Tesla) and tech players (such as Sony). Acting as a bridge between each of these three categories, we are empowering them to bring their most ambitious visions to fruition.
The mavericks within this space can benefit from our support as they are often companies without extensive experience in building software-defined vehicles. Furthermore, we offer both products and services, putting us in a privileged spot with an important competitive advantage. Our service engagement generates valuable ideas and if we see patterns of interest across industry, we are able to transform those ideas into products. Ultimately, Elektrobit is blessed with collaborative DNA that is expressed both within our company and in the relations we enjoy with our partners and customers with whom we co-develop innovative solutions.
C.R.: We have been offering solutions to the automotive industry ever since software was only a minor part of the equation. For over 35 years, we have worked hard to unlock the immense potential of this space. Fifteen years ago, we were the first to use agile software development to bring improvements and functionality in small increments instead of implementing a massive unitary system that would take more time and resources. This pioneering work allowed us to build a robust and trustworthy presence in the automotive market, thus leading the way for other software developers.
What were the ingredients that made software and IT become the disruptive forces that changed not only all the industries, but also our everyday lives?
M.A.: During the four years that I have worked in the automotive industry, the fascination for automated driving, connected cars, electrification and shared mobility has been growing consistently in a quantifiable manner approximately every six months. All these trends have a single common denominator: software-powered solutions. Research shows that by 2026, 36% of all cars will have OTA capabilities and by 2031, 35% of all new vehicles will be based on a software platform. The IT industry realized long ago that software is changing rapidly and that the only way to keep up is to reinvent itself and reuse as many components within the ecosystem as possible. It is both a cooperative and a competitive spirit that pushes us forward, with open-source solutions and experimenting with new technologies being the core drivers of innovation.
