How Tesla Is Leading the Auto Software Evolution

Around Ten years ago, a fresh parvenu vehicle firm known as Tesla Motors started auto software innovations. This company blazed out a software update to its latest sedans. The features of this update included tethered to 3g or wifi internet connections. Model S owners can download a tweak to their music players. This update also includes some other features. However, it was a slight change with profound echoes that continue today. This software update was the first time a vehicle company treated a car like a modern tech product. After that,  Tesla’s software developments continued to grow. 

In short, with notable developments, Tesla gradually paved the way, and now many car companies from all over the are racing to catch up. For instance, the auto giants Volkswagen and General Motors are focused on becoming tech firms. We will dive into more details in this article; keep reading.

General Motors and Volkswagen in Auto Software Innovations

As we said earlier, GM and Volkswagen are among the auto giants. Today, these big auto companies are trying their best to transform themselves into tech companies. They are working towards smarter cars that are entertaining and satisfying to operate like smartphones. Also, they are working on auto software innovations that are increasingly autonomous and competent in downloading the latest transformative capabilities with just a touch. The prime reason for following these automotive software trends is that the giant companies know that software-defined cars are the future.

Potential Challenges Of the Future

Undoubtedly, transforming vehicles into cash-printing smartphones on four or more wheels is an enticing offer for the industry, especially for those industries that are going through low-profit margins compared to tech businesses. As a result, making that change happen will take work and effort. First, You need to understand the revolutionary shift happening to understand why it is that hard. Software has indeed been present in vehicles for more than ten years. It was historically spread out around 100 or more small bits of hardware. Many different suppliers design this hardware to stay unchanged from when a car leaves the plant to when it is discarded. Sounds difficult. 

Now, the big car firms won’t excel in their software games instantly; for this, these companies need to go beyond music players, maps, and smartphone integration. They need to work on automated driving systems and the features you spend money on and take subscriptions for. Moreover, the latest electric vehicle technology includes new e-commerce and entertainment add-ons and battery management systems for EVs. Most of all, it includes changing practically any part of a vehicle with easy over-the-air software updates; this is generally known as OTA. 

Let’s say Volkswagen started working on it. For all these workings, they will need the latest software architecture, which is effortlessly integrated and easily updatable throughout a car. In this way, the company will ace  Volkswagen’s automotive software development. 

Some other manufacturers, like Ford, are working towards bringing most of the software working in-house, imitating the strategy of Tesla and other giant EV startups. Insourcing software development has many benefits and significant challenges, particularly for firms that have never tried to develop much software.

Things are Not Going Well Already

Industry experts are in different stages of transformation, and things have been challenging thus far. The company FORD has hit obstacles by sending out OTAs to its electric vehicles with failed software updates regarding cars that are undrivable in a few cases. However, this incident has also occurred with Tesla; hence, it can be a fraught procedure. Besides,  GM technology advances and software architecture seem to be experiencing severe problems. Furthermore, the big Volkswagen company, the owner of the Audi, Porsche, and VW brands, has had continuous software confusion, which has resulted in buggy vehicles and postponed new cars. Plus, it reportedly resulted in the removal of the company’s CEO in 2022. 

What is Upcoming?

Do not set expectations about vehicles with auto software innovations to be flawless all that soon. As car manufacturers embark on their new platforms and software updates coming in the future, things will possibly get even worse before getting better. Experts say that some vehicle companies will tire of developing exceptional underlying software architectures, a trend that can benefit companies on a big scale. Plus, having a small number of dominant forums would build a friendlier atmosphere for application developers. In the end, it will result in a better customer experience. This is precisely what happens in the mobile market: developers teamed up with Apple and Android systems, and the rest dried out.

Why Vehicles are Becoming Tech Devices?

Indeed,  auto software innovations are taking place in the auto market. The question here is, why are cars becoming tech devices? Several vital factors drive businesses that have long existed on hardware toward the software craze. The peak of electric vehicles is one of them. In the predicted future, generating money for electric vehicles will be more challenging than for combustion cars. The prime reason is lithium-ion batteries’ high and volatile cost, hence more revenue from customized features and other tech-related offerings. Moreover, plenty of electric cars drive pretty similarly to each other, pushing carmakers to build novel means to keep their product separated.

Tesla, Volkswagen, and GM on Auto Software Innovations

Features	Tesla’s approach	Volkswagen’s approach	GM’s approach
Autonomous driving technology	Regular updates, advanced AI	In-house research, partnerships	Ridesharing focus, cruise automation
User interface and experience	Offers sleek and instinctive touchscreen interfaces	Developing advanced user interfaces, focusing on integration with digital services	Prioritizing instinctive controls
Energy efficiency and management	Implementing sophisticated software algorithms, extending battery life, and improving energy consumption	Implementing software solutions to manage energy consumption	Focusing on maximizing efficiency and range with different software solutions

Conclusion

he discussion on auto software innovations ends here. The summary is that Tesla has made remarkable progress in auto software development. Other giants are doing their best to follow what Tesla did. The prime reason is that they want the popularity and charm that Tesla has achieved during the past years by making unique software updates. However, these giants are facing difficulties in doing so. It is like the giants are throwing spaghetti on the wall right now, and it seems what sticks to it. At last, it is not easy to do what Tesla did or go beyond it. Ultimately, no matter what happens, that future is all about electric vehicle technology.

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