Automakers must use data to thwart start-up threat

Referring to connected vehicles as ‘computers on wheels’ may have become cliché, but it is not entirely unmerited. Courtesy of 5G connectivity development, the influx of vehicle sensors and cameras, and the increase of in-vehicle computing power, sooner rather than later these machines will provide round the clock data collection and analysis capabilities. Understanding how this data can be best collated and used, however, is no easy task.

This is not deterring automotive players or external stakeholders from taking on the challenge, with competitors eager to make the most of the market’s huge potential value. According to Mark Thirman, the lead of IBM Consulting’s Global Connected Edge Strategy, connected vehicles are not just a significant Internet of Things (IoT) vertical but, in fact, the largest. “The market forecasts for more than half a trillion dollars of market value by 2030,” he said during a panel discussion at Mobile World Conference (MWC) 2022, noting that continued 5G rollout, shared mobility and electric vehicles (EVs) will have the biggest impact.