Volkswagen Group Teams Up With Microsoft To Accelerate Automated Driving Development
Volkswagen Group’s Car.Software Organisation will collaborate with Microsoft to build a cloud-based Automated Driving Platform (ADP) on Microsoft Azure.
The aim is to deliver automated driving experiences even faster at a global level. Running on Azure will also increase the efficiency of the development of advanced driver assistance systems and AD functions for cars across Volkswagen Group brands.
"As we transform Volkswagen Group into a digital mobility provider, we are looking to continuously increase the efficiency of our software development. We are building the Automated Driving Platform with Microsoft to simplify our developers’ work through one scalable and data-based engineering environment. By combining our comprehensive expertise in the development of connected driving solutions with Microsoft's cloud and software engineering know-how, we will accelerate the delivery of safe and comfortable mobility services.”
-Dirk Hilgenberg, CEO of the Car.Software Organisation
There are many benefits to ADAS and automated driving vehicles, including increased passenger safety, congestion reduction and more comfortable mobility. However building these solutions requires huge computer capabilities, such as for recording data from road and weather conditions to obstacle detection and driver behaviour. Machine algorithms learn from billions of these real and simulated miles driven and are key to developing even more connected drives.
Car.Software Organisation and Microsoft will address these challenges together, by simplifying driver experience and leveraging the learnings from miles driven through one database. This will enable one development environment for Car.Software Organisation’s developers globally, reducing development cycles from months to weeks, more efficiently managing this huge amount of data. Continuous expansion is also expected as things develop.
"This is the next evolution of our foundational work with the Volkswagen Group to enhance their transformation as a software-driven mobility provider.
“The power of Microsoft Azure and its computer, data and AI capabilities will enable Volkswagen to deliver secure and reliable automated driving solutions to their customers faster."
- Scott Guthrie, executive vice president, Cloud + AI at Microsoft
By 2025, Volkswagen Group is set to invest around EUR 27 billion in digitilisation, increasing in-house development of car software from 10 percent to 60 percent. Founded just last year, Car.Software Organisation plays a key role in this expansion.
Since 2018, Volkswagen and Microsoft have been collaborating on the Volkswagen Automotive Cloud (VW.AC), which focuses on integrating all digital services and mobility offerings across the Group brands and models in the future. The cloud enables Volkswagen to deliver vehicle updates and features independently of hardware, thus improving customer experience all the time. The first VW.AC connected test fleets are expected to hit the road in 2021. Production rollout is planned for 2022.
Find out more about the Volkswagen range or contact your local Caffyns Volkwagen dealership for more information.