If you needed a surprise in the new year, this is it! We are back!! It’s been a longish hiatus. I needed the time to recharge and think about where the industry is headed. We also welcomed a new member to our family, and I have used the time to change over a thousand nappies!!

So, what exactly happened in the last year? 

The AI in Automotive Podcast quietly - literally quietly - turned five. 

AI went properly mainstream. Like BOOM mainstream! The silicon valley AI CEOs turned into demigods, and everything from your toaster to your kids’ toys turned AI-powered, seemingly overnight.

AI was always an important enabling technology in the automotive industry, and this is what we had been covering on the show for the last five years. But the buzz around AI pushed some OEMs to make AI in the car more visible - enter features like ‘ChatGPT in the car’. There are interesting applications for a conversational interface in the vehicle - we covered this in our chat with Matt Anderson from SoundHound, for instance. But for them to have any value to the driver, software-defined vehicles with a coherent EE architecture is a key pre-requisite. We’ve covered this in numerous conversations in the past. With Sarah Tatsis from BlackBerry for instance, or Hemant Sikaria from Sibros.

If you look beyond what is mainstream, then the biggest theme that is emerging is the rapid convergence of the automotive and energy industries. We are seeing energy utilities turn into EV lease companies, and automotive OEMs turning into energy companies, thanks to the energy in the batteries of their EV parc. This represents significant opportunities for energy companies, automotive OEMs, fleet owners / operators and hundreds of other players in the automotive and energy ecosystems. 

Needless to say, AI, as an enabling technology, is a key accelerator of this convergence. This is what we will be covering in future episodes of the AI in Automotive Podcast. 

As always, I have an incredible roster of knowledgeable experts sharing valuable insights and unique perspectives. I am sure you will enjoy what is coming up.

If you feel you have benefited from the content on this show in the past, please do share the AI in Automotive Podcast with your friends and colleagues who might find it valuable as well. I promise you there are no more babies on the way, and hence, no more long breaks!!

AI in Automotive Podcast