Holographic augmented reality head-up display technology, WayRay, 2018, Porsche AG
Porsche AG, the German automobile manufacturer specializing in high-performance sports cars, SUVs and sedans, is one of the “elite” automotive developers and distributors; competing at equal grounds with BMW, Mercedes and other giants in the automotive market.
The Germany-based company is expected to increase their investments in startups; especially focusing on the particular startups and projects that are based around Artificial Intelligence and Blockchain technology.
Porsche is intending to invest $176 million over the course of the coming five years, as per a press release by Porsche on September 25th. The investments will be focused majorly on companies that in their early stages or are growing their scope. The targeted companies relate to “customer experience, mobility and digital lifestyle,” as well as future technologies including blockchain, AI, and virtual and augmented reality.
The press release clearly stated the motivation and the reason for why Porsche is planning of investing in smart startups over the coming five years. They published in their notes that the decision was prompted by the need to “gain access to trends, new technologies and business models”
Lutz Meschke, deputy chairman and member of the executive board for finance and IT at Porsche AG, said that they company has a need to “fundamentally change business model” He went on to explain why: “To date, innovation has been driven to a large degree by technology and with strong links to our current core competencies […] It is essential that we build a strong ecosystem with competent partners.”
Porsche began exploring the usage of Block chain applications in the automotive industry as they partnered with XAIN, a startup based in Berlin. Similarly, Diamler AG, another giant in the automotive industry revealed their own virtual currency that worked on the principles of the blockchain technology, called MobiCoin. Audi followed suit by testing blockchain applications in their supply chain for their distribution process optimization. We all know that while these companies research block chain, Tesla by Elon Musk has by far changed the game by actually distributing vehicles equipped with Artificially Intelligent programming.
So yes, it is very obvious noting from the activities of different companies that Block chain and AI are certainly are a crucial part of the competition between automotive giants. Porsche, like always, is not lagging behind in any way.