In an age where electric cars are (finally) reaching maturity and vehicles on our roads are getting smarter with how they interact with the objects around them and the people inside them, it’s good to see that even very traditional car companies are getting on board. Porsche has just launched an entirely new wing of its company devoted to in-car connectivity and autonomous driving.
As part of what the company calls “a major innovation offensive”, Porsche Digital will partner with other leading brands in the areas it wants to focus on – things like machine-to-machine wireless and mobile connectivity to let cars communicate with each other and with their owners remotely, autonomous driving systems for the group’s vehicles, and more.
Porsche will even invest some of its money into venture capital holdings, and will pour cash into promising start-ups attempting to build smarter cars. This is almost an unexpected move from a company that has built its credibility on a raw but refined, mechanical rather than electronic driving experience.
Recent cars like the 918 Spyder, which uses a hybrid petrol-electric drivetrain and uses the electric motor’s instant torque to fill in gaps in the petrol engine’s performance — including in between gear shifts — show that Porsche knows the significance of new technologies. The company also recently announced a new modular V8 engine platform destined for its new Cayenne, which can be easily adapted to fit into other Porsche Group vehicles like Audis and Lamborghinis. [Porsche]