Automotive Revolution

Today’s economies are dramatically changing, triggered by development in emerging markets, the accelerated rise of new technologies, sustainability policies, and changing consumer preferences around ownership. Digitization, increasing automation, and new business models have revolutionized other industries, and automotive will be no exception. These forces are giving rise to four disruptive technology-driven trends in the automotive sector: diverse mobility, autonomous driving, electrification, and connectivity.

Overall, global car sales will continue to grow, but the annual growth rate is expected to drop from 3.6 percent over the last five years to around 2 percent by 2030. This drop will be largely driven by macroeconomic factors and the rise of new mobility services such as car sharing and e-hailing.

A detailed analysis suggests that dense areas with a large, established vehicle base are fertile ground for these new mobility services, and many cities and suburbs in Europe and North America fit this profile. New mobility services may result in a decline in private-vehicle sales, but this decline is likely to be offset by increased sales of shared vehicles that need to be replaced more often due to higher utilization and related wear and tear.

This special edition of Automotive focuses on some of the most outstanding and innovative solutions and service providers. To help our readers deep dive into Automotive solution providers we have also included insights from an array of industry experts and veterans. We hope this edition adds value to your Automotive initiatives.