It sees a 'new era' for the auto industry BMW today announced it is shifting its development strategy toward more all-electric vehicles (EVs) and autonomous technology in order to address a “new era” in the industry. The luxury automaker’s CEO, Harald Krüger, said the company would also focus on premium products and services for “individual mobility.” “The technological focus will therefore be on consistently achieving further advances in the fields of electric mobility and automated driving,” Krüger said in a statement. Under the banner of BMW iNEXT, the company will develop a third model in its i-Series of EVs. BMW BMW’s i Vision Future Interaction Concept Car was unveiled at CES in January. The car represents BMW’s networked cockpit and the user interface of the future with information for the driver through head-up display, instrument cluster with three-dimensional display and 21-in panorama display. The new i-Series car will include forms of automated driving and “digital connectivity” — most likely Wi-Fi — together with a new generation of lightweight construction and a redesigned interior design ethos “that will set new standards for the customer’s mobility experience.” Krüger sees changes sweeping across the world of mobility through digitalization as an excellent opportunity to make mobile life simpler, safer and more convenient, thereby inspiring completely new customer groups. A project referred to as “i 2.0” will focus on automated and fully networked driving. “The BMW Group will cement its position as technological leader in this field, too. A clear focus will be placed on high-definition digital maps, sensor technology, cloud technology and artificial intelligence, the decisive areas for success in this segment,” BMW said in its statement. “In the coming years, the BMW Group will focus on broadening its technological expertise, expanding the scope of digital connectivity between people, vehicles and services and actively strengthening sustainable mobility,” the company said. BMW will also increase the “scale of electrification” in its plug-in hybrids and with its upcoming fourth and fifth generations, extend electric range. The company also plans to build a plug-in hybrid MINI, though it didn’t offer details about that vehicle. The automaker will eventually have seven car models that will be either purely electrically powered, like the BMW i3, or feature a combination of combustion engine and electric motor as plug-in hybrids. “The BMW Group also continues to develop hydrogen fuel-cell technology; the current test vehicles achieve a range up to 700 kilometres,” it stated. Related content news analysis Apple earnings: About that iPhone 'slump' in China Based on information from Thursday's earnings report, it seems that data pointing to an iPhone slump in China were over-baked. By Jonny Evans May 03, 2024 9 mins iMac iPhone Apple news Microsoft begins to phase out ‘classic’ Teams Microsoft is encouraging Teams customers to move to the new, faster version of the collaboration app; the older version will be switched off next year. By Matthew Finnegan May 03, 2024 3 mins Microsoft Teams Collaboration Software Productivity Software news analysis Apple confirms it will open up the iPad in Europe this fall The latest efforts to comply with Europe’s Digital Markets Act mean developers can offer to side load apps to both iPhones and iPads in the EU. Apple has also taken steps to improve what it offers to smaller and non-commercial developers in the By Jonny Evans May 02, 2024 6 mins iPad Apple Mobile Apps news Udacity offers laid-off US workers free access to its courses for 30 days Sign-ups will be available over the next 30 days By Lucas Mearian May 02, 2024 4 mins Technology Industry IT Jobs IT Skills Podcasts Videos Resources Events SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER From our editors straight to your inbox Get started by entering your email address below. Please enter a valid email address Subscribe