The industry is changing gears. While aesthetics, power, fuel economy and safety are always essential, the industry's overall focus is shifting toward developing greener, more sustainable vehicles and optimizing the automotive customer experience.
This is being driven by a complex mix of national regulations, technological advances, and a fundamental change in attitude toward car ownership and consumer demands for more sustainable vehicles.
Sustainability mobility
Importantly, the growing number of electric vehicle (EV) charging stations is fueling the answer to sustainable transport, e-mobility.
Such electrification is booming everywhere. With charging infrastructures improving and spreading, and EVs able to travel farther, the adoption of battery-driven cars is set to surge. This is especially true when used with hydrogen fuel cell technology to reduce costs, increase driving distances and produce zero emission.
Electrifying the experience
Naturally, driving needs still determine whether you use a combustion car, hybrid, or EV, but the number of electrified options is growing, leading to a fundamental change in the driver experience.
While some may miss the old days of loud, powerful engines, the advances within today's vehicles are turning them into a full automotive experience.
Yet some of the top-end EVs are extremely fast – the Polestar 2, with its dual-motor variant and Performance Pack, offers 455 hp. Things may be going green but that doesn't mean theress any compromise in quality and features.
When talking about features and experience, the industry isn't holding back. Of all the current customer experience trends in the industry, smart mobility that leads the way.
Focused on low-to-no emissions, smart mobility is about three things:
- Connected technology powered by the super low latency of 5G wireless.
- Autonomous driving that optimizes driving efficiencies while boosting the need for more entertainment features.
- Smart cities that use 5G networks, artificial intelligence, and big data to link with connected cars to better optimize traffic flows, automate car parking, search for potential incidents, alert emergency services and more.