BMW has witnessed all the turmoil that Volkswagen has gone through — and continues to deal with — over its emissions crisis.
It may be part of the reason why the high-end luxury automaker not only wants to make electric vehicles more of its future plans, but also combine EVs with autonomous technology.
On Wednesday in Munich, BMW revealed its Strategy Number One > Next plan as its clear path to driving mobility into a higher gear, both now and in the near future.
Perhaps the flagship symbol for that is the BMW iNEXT autonomous electric vehicle, as part of the company's project i 2.0, pushing toward automated and fully-networked driving.
"BMW iNEXT heralds the next era of mobility," Harald Kruger, chairman of BMW AG's board of management, announced Wednesday, as reported by the automaker's press release statement. "This symbol of our technology leadership will demonstrate how we will bring the future of mobility into series production."
While the iNEXT is expected to impact roads closer to the start of the next decade, the automaker has several iPerformance plug-in hybrids that it will be rolling out with from this year and onward, including a Mini. There will also be a BMW i8 roadster down the line, with an i3 touting a bolstered battery capacity being available by the end of the year. The automaker vows to continue developing hydrogen fuel-cell technology as well.
Within project i 2.0, BMW says it will place "clear focus" on ramping up areas such as artificial intelligence, high-definition digital maps, cloud technology and sensors.
"Our focus is clear — we are securing the BMW Group's position as technological market leader," Klaus Frohlich, a board member dedicated in development, said in the company's press release. "With project i 2.0 we will lead the field of autonomous driving. We will turn research projects into new kinds of industrial processes, bringing future technology onto the road."
If the i Vision Future Interaction mobility system, which Tech Times saw at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2016 this past January in Las Vegas, is any indication, then BMW might leave some of its competition in the dust in autonomy.
That's because the system offered drivers three different driving modes, including Pure Drive, Assisted Drive and Auto Drive, with the latter allowing the driver to take calls or check emails with full-connectivity while the car is en route to its destination.
