BMW refocuses i brand on driverless cars instead of EVs, report says
Who would have ever thought BMW, the "Ultimate Driving Machine" brand, would someday view autonomous tech as paramount to electrified vehicles?
In the face of increasing competition in the luxury EV market from Porsche, Audi and Tesla, rather than double down on lightweight electrified cars, BMW has instead shifted the efforts of its i brand to focus on autonomous driving technology.
According to Automotive News, BMW board member Klaus Froehlich revealed that BMW i was relaunched in April as Project i Next, a division charged with producing driverless cars.
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The shift doesn't mean BMW has completely given up on EVs, though. The fruits of the new Project i Next were detailed in mid May by company chairman of the board Harald Krüger. The car, called iNext, will be a fully autonomous electrified car slated for debut in 2021.
With a driverless car, BMW could start a ride-hailing company to rival Uber and Lyft, Froehlich admitted.
He also believes large-scale implementation of fully autonomous cars will begin in China, the world's largest car market. "China is extremely fast implementing technology. Last year, more electric cars were sold in China than in all the other global markets combined," said Froehlich.
If you're wondering what happens to BMW branding as the Ultimate Driving Machine when its cars drive themselves, fret not. Although cars will drive themselves in a few years, as discussed in my recent investigation of the future of car ownership, removing people from the driver's seat will never extinguish the eternal drive to one-up your neighbor.
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Topics Cars
