From Cybersecurity to In-Cabin Experiences: Reuters Automotive USA 2024 Recap

[00:00:00] Hello friend, Carl Anthony on the digital airwaves as Reuters Automotive USA 2024 from the Huntington Place in downtown Detroit has concluded.

[00:00:08] For the majority of the 2024 event held October 21st through the 23rd, I was helping to host and moderate panels on the Blue Stage, which was focused on software-defined vehicles.

[00:00:21] Here are some key takeaways from my time on the Blue Stage.

[00:00:25] It's my hope that you can use these as actionable insights and that they will be beneficial to you and your colleagues.

[00:00:32] I cannot take credit for these insights as they come from the many distinguished panelists who I shared the stage with.

[00:00:38] I am not the originator here, but rather the messenger.

[00:00:42] Moving at the speed of mobility, this is AutoVision News Radio with Carl Anthony in Detroit, Michigan.

[00:00:48] Generative AI has applications for automotive manufacturing.

[00:00:52] And the panelist on the Blue Stage spoke about how AI can enable the next level of manufacturing.

[00:00:59] In other words, we are keen to discuss the car of tomorrow.

[00:01:02] But we also need to discuss the industry of tomorrow.

[00:01:07] What does the next level of the automotive industry look like that would build the next level of the car?

[00:01:13] If we have this view of what this next level of the automotive industry looks like, perhaps AI can support the journey to get there.

[00:01:21] It's also important to note that everything is subject to change.

[00:01:25] One panelist spoke about how generative AI is evolving and that 10 years from now we might call it something different.

[00:01:32] It's possible we would not use the term generative AI any longer.

[00:01:37] When it comes to connected vehicles, we have to collect the right data with regard to cost and the best customer experience.

[00:01:46] How do we harmonize this process?

[00:01:48] Because as one panelist noted, the ecosystem here is complex.

[00:01:53] Data consent is also important.

[00:01:55] Does the driver or owner of that vehicle understand how all of the data is being used?

[00:02:00] How should we, as the automotive industry, communicate this in a way that consumers can understand?

[00:02:06] Likewise, our cybersecurity and connectivity panelists spoke about how gold is in the data

[00:02:12] and that bad actors are always after that gold.

[00:02:16] The panelist here encouraged us to examine the attack vectors that put the automotive industry at risk

[00:02:22] and do everything we can to shut out bad actors so they cannot access the gold in the data.

[00:02:28] Software-defined vehicles, or SDVs for short, were a main topic here on the Blue Stage.

[00:02:35] Can SDVs be a gateway to a safer vehicle?

[00:02:39] The overwhelming answer was yes, although challenges remain, be it an engineering challenge around different ADAS systems

[00:02:47] or helping consumers gain more acceptance of the active safety features in their vehicle.

[00:02:52] The experts on this panel spoke about the role of regulation when it comes to creating safer roadways,

[00:02:59] while also examining some of the main causes of accidents and collisions, namely speeding, distraction, and intoxication.

[00:03:06] The difficulty is that while an SDV can support the sensors necessary for a more robust ADAS suite,

[00:03:15] if a person is speeding or not wearing their seatbelt or finds those ADAS features annoying,

[00:03:22] well, you can see the cycle of difficulty that our panelists wrestled with.

[00:03:27] Perhaps the biggest takeaway was that while we can and should leverage partnerships across the industry to create a safer vehicle,

[00:03:35] we should not compete on safety.

[00:03:38] One of our panels on the Blue Stage looked at the idea of what it takes to design an SDV architecture that would provide an optimal driving experience.

[00:03:49] The experts here suggested that while EVs are important and that one expects a certain level of driving experience with an EV,

[00:03:58] that we should widen our lens.

[00:04:01] When it comes to SDVs and designing a vehicle architecture that would deliver the best driving dynamics,

[00:04:07] we have to consider the entire powertrain landscape,

[00:04:11] which includes internal combustion engines and hybrid powertrains.

[00:04:15] Likewise, we also need to consider the talent base.

[00:04:18] It's important to train and develop the next generation of engineering talent who will be designing the SDVs of tomorrow.

[00:04:26] Ultimately, a software-defined vehicle is more than just a smartphone on wheels.

[00:04:31] It's not a tablet with tires, although it's a common analogy.

[00:04:36] While there are some familiar things that would resemble our phone, such as an OTA update,

[00:04:41] a car and a phone are really two different things.

[00:04:45] What we can do with an SDV, however, is, like our phone, create a more personalized experience inside the vehicle.

[00:04:54] That said, it's important to understand the customer experience and ask ourselves what they're really looking for.

[00:05:01] And although that might be different between the buyer of, say, an entry-level sedan versus a six-figure luxury car,

[00:05:07] the underlying functionality and foundation that would enable those two personalized experiences inside those two different vehicles for two different buyers is the same.

[00:05:19] For OEMs, this foundation can be transferable across individual brands and vehicle lines to reduce cost and complexity.

[00:05:29] Perhaps a good visual here is a modular platform or architecture that can accommodate a range of different vehicles, which has benefits for manufacturing.

[00:05:38] This is kind of like that, but on the software side.

[00:05:42] While SDVs can deliver a better customer experience, the experts on our in-cabin panel express some common pain points that are still standing in the way,

[00:05:53] including the unreliability of voice commands.

[00:05:56] One panelist even said they have given up on trying to use voice commands for placing phone calls or speaking a destination into the navigation system.

[00:06:05] I didn't understand you.

[00:06:06] That if we want to deliver a better customer experience inside the car, voice activation is a good place to start.

[00:06:13] The experts on our in-cabin panel also discussed ways in which our digital lives outside the vehicle could become more intertwined

[00:06:22] and that an effective execution of that very thing is something future buyers would appreciate.

[00:06:28] This led to a conversation about convenience where the car could, in effect, have your phone already saved.

[00:06:35] If you left your phone at home by mistake, your vehicle's infotainment could function without your phone as your phone.

[00:06:43] This also led to some creative discussions as well, like in-vehicle gaming or blocking out the back windows for passengers with a soothing or relaxing background,

[00:06:54] as if the windows could also function as digital screens.

[00:06:57] And finally, as described by the Michigan Public Service Commission during a presentation on the Blue Stage,

[00:07:04] careful planning of the charging infrastructure is paramount.

[00:07:07] The challenge is determining the placement of future chargers, as they will need to be in areas where people will see them and be able to use them.

[00:07:16] Data models are being employed to help with that, but it's also a public endeavor,

[00:07:20] so feedback is important with regard to the charging infrastructure.

[00:07:25] Link in the show notes for more information on the Michigan Public Service Commission.

[00:07:30] Reuters Automotive Europe 2025 is set for April 29th and 30th in Stuttgart, Germany.

[00:07:36] Automotive USA will return to the Motor City starting on October 28th, 2025.

[00:07:42] From the Huntington Place in downtown Detroit, at Reuters Automotive USA 2024,

[00:07:48] I'm Carl Anthony, AutoVision News Radio.