Qualcomm, the world’s biggest phone chip supplier, has announced its Car-to-Cloud service today – which allows car companies to connect vehicles to clouds.
The latest development is set to revolutionise car connectivity, infotainment and even safety, enabling automotive driving with 4G and 5G support, dubbed ‘Snapdragon Ride’.
‘The Qualcomm Car-to-CloudService… empowers automakers and tier-1 suppliers to address new expectations of the modern and discerning car owner who is used to flexible and continuously updating technologies, while also unlocking new features capabilities over the course of a vehicle’s lifetime,” said Nakul Duggal, senior vice president, product management, Qualcomm Technologies.
It means that automakers will be able to keep their cars up to date and allow them to update their infotainment platforms over the air.
In addition, the Car-to-Cloud platform enables the gathering of vehicle and usage analytics – a move Qualcomm argues will open new revenue channels – as carmakers will create pay-as-you-go services and unlockable features to drivers.
As car manufacturing and technology advances, so does consumer expectations. Having an infotainment system that is updated over the air is standard practice in car manufacturing now – but Qualcomm says their service makes cars ‘futureproof’, will lead to faster updates and cost-effective operations.
It also claims the technology will improve on-demand services for car sharing by providing new connected services.
But for drivers – the most researched and important stakeholder – it’ll lead to a more personalised drive, allowing car owners to have control over their services and features.
Qualcomm intends to have its Car-to-Cloud product on the road by 2023.
