Summary
- BMW’s Neue Klasse teases Level 3 ambitions and AR driving experiences at IAA Mobility.
- Qualcomm’s Snapdragon Ride (V2X 200) + Digital Chassis enable AR HUDs and stronger Level 2+ features.
- With Level 3 stalled, improving in-car AR experiences is the practical next step for innovation.
This weekend marks the start of the IAA Mobility event in Munich, Germany, which is a yearly auto show dedicated to technological advancements, particularly in the German manufacturer space. This year, all eyes are on BMW, who’s upcoming Neue Klasse of vehicles looks to be a landmark product in terms of taking steps towards Level 3 autonomous driving and, my personal favorite, Augmented Reality driving experiences.
While the entire market is stuck on trying to lift itself to Level 3 Autonomous capability, Qualcomm, one of the global leaders in automotive semiconductor production, and BMW are looking to make Level 2 as good as it gets, and it seems that their next move is just a model year or two away. How do I know this? Well, I got the chance to speak with some of Qualcomm’s top brass and ask a question that’s been on my mind about the company’s newest Snapdragon Ride software, which will be implemented on the Neue Klasse to offer Level 2+ autonomous capability, and their answers were more than intriguing.
What even is AR driving?
Believe me, I’m so glad you asked
If you’ve had experience with things like Meta glasses, you already have a sense of what Augmented Reality can do. It’s not as obtrusive as Virtual Reality headsets that cover your entire face, but it’s just enough to enhance your experience in the world around you. Now, imagine if your car’s software was designed to work hand in hand with those same glasses. They could alert you to things in the world around you that you might not notice, or even offer you clear directions that don’t necessitate you looking down at your GPS screen, instrument cluster or HUD.
All of those alerts come from fixed positions, and more often than not require you to look away from the road or your surroundings to make decisions while driving. When Panasonic released its concept for Augmented Reality glass displays, it showed that the hardware was ready to be placed into cars, or at least that it would be soon. Since then, BMW has been the loudest about implementing said technology through the integration of AR glasses and hardware, and now, the software is primed, too.
Why Snapdragon Ride is the next big step
I love it when a plan comes together
So, the hardware has been available, but now, the software that can power all of it is available as well, especially in the newest iteration of Qualcomm’s Snapdragon Ride platform, which utilizes what the company has dubbed as the V2X (Vehicle to Everything) 200 chipset.
This set allows the vehicle to have greater sensory skills of the world around it, feeding into an AI model that also works hand in hand with the autonomous driving systems. Normally, companies like Qualcomm keep their cards close to their chest in terms of future capabilities, at least until they announce the product formally themselves. However, as my question wasn’t necessarily about Qualcomm and BMW’s relationship, the execs spoke more freely about its scalability in terms of AR compatibility.
“The Ride Pilot system, or the equivalent that BMW has put into their vehicle lines with the complete vehicle integration, provides all the different parts that you need for an augmented reality heads-up display integration,” Qualcomm’s VP of product management, Anshuman Saxena, shared. “And that’s not just about what you show on the augmented reality heads up display, it’s basically the whole experience which is available.”
Saxena then explained that all the information that would be displayed on an AR display is available within their chip set as part of the new announcement with BMW. The kicker here, though, is that it’s only getting started. Qualcomm boasts one of the most impressive client lists in the world, and alongside its SnapDragon Ride Pilot system lies the SnapDragon Digital Chassis suite, which will also come in the Neue Klasse, that allows for easier Vehicle-to-vehicle communication. As the Digital Chassis footprint increases, so, too, will improvements in the augmented reality performance model, which hints at the fact that basic levels of AR technology should be coming to new releases incredibly soon, perhaps even within the next model year or two.
“The Ride Pilot system, or the equivalent that BMW has put into their vehicle lines with the complete vehicle integration, provides all the different parts that you need for an augmented reality heads-up display integration.”
Which is the better way forward? Level 3 autonomy or AR driving
Pick your poison, but we’ve seen this before
Remember when automakers dove headfirst into EV production, and how the EV boom was always just around the corner? Well, now with the tax benefits associated with EV buying dropping off, that boom doesn’t appear to be coming. Instead, it appears that steady growth and improvement will be the key, much like in every other segment of the automotive market. Similarly, companies have rushed headfirst into developing the best automated driving systems possible, and for a few years now, we’ve been stuck at Level 2. Even Qualcomm advertises Level 2+, which still needs human supervision. This isn’t to say that it’s a waste of development, but when it comes to what’s legally possible on the roads, it seems like Level 2 is as far as we’re going to get for a while. Developments have hit a sort of road block.
Hence, Level 3 is currently used sparingly and only in large metropolitan areas via things like Waymo. So, how will companies continue to innovate? The next logical step is improving in-cabin experiences, which is where AR comes into play. By improving upon what’s capable within a car’s interior, which is the section of the car owners view the most, companies will be able to capitalize on the tech that Qualcomm and its SnapDragon platform are allowing them to implement. Think about how much different car interiors are now than in, say, 2020. They’re virtually the same, and a breakthrough in that department is just about bound to happen before Level 3 autonomous systems become widely available.
