So check it out, folks. We’ve got this report from IDTechEx, right? And it’s all about the future of computer chips in cars. Now, here’s the deal – we’ve always had chips in cars, but nobody really gives a damn about them until they either stop working or cause some major bottleneck in the production line. But according to this report, things are about to change, my friends.
IDTechEx is sayin’ that trends in the automotive industry are gonna make us consumers care a whole lot more about what chips are in our cars. They’re actually sayin’ that buying a new vehicle in the future is gonna be like shoppin’ for a brand spankin’ new laptop. I mean, who would’ve thunk it, right?
When you buy a laptop, one of the main things you look at is how long the battery lasts, how nice the screens are, and what kind of computer chip it’s got. Well, apparently, the same is gonna apply to cars real soon. Those old criteria of evaluating a car’s worth based on the number of cylinders, horsepower, and miles per gallon are gonna become irrelevant.
I’m tellin’ ya, the car industry is goin’ through a major transformation. We all know electric vehicles are takin’ over, but what about these screens that are poppin’ up all over car cabins? Even the cheaper cars have some kind of fancy display, and the top-end ones are goin’ all out with screens everywhere you look.
Now, you might think, “Wow, that’s cool! More screens means more fun!” But hold your horses, my friends. These screens are actually a means for the car industry to squeeze more money out of us drivers. Yeah, they’ll use the screens to offer more premium features and probably even more subscriptions. It’s a sneaky move, if you ask me.
But here’s the thing, gaming in cars is becomin’ a thing too. Look at Tesla, they caused a stir when they showed that their Model S can run freakin’ video games on its infotainment system. And Mercedes, they’ve taken it to the next level. With their level 3 certification for autonomous driving, the driver can actually play games while the car’s drivin’ itself, up to 40 mph. That’s wild!
But let me tell ya, as cool as gaming in cars sounds, the real power of these chips in modern and future vehicles is gonna be used for drivin’ those autonomous systems. IDTechEx’s report found that the most advanced semiconductor technologies are gonna be used in autonomous driving systems.
You see, a high-performance gaming laptop relies on a powerful graphics card to turn data into images for the screen. Well, it turns out that’s pretty similar to what autonomous vehicles need to do. They gotta take data from cameras, radar, LiDAR, and all that jazz, and turn it into a 3D map of the environment, identifyin’ all the vehicles and people around ’em.
That’s where big players like Nvidia come in. They’ve expanded into the automotive space, offerin’ top-notch computing power for autonomous applications. Their upcoming Thor product is gonna have a whopping 2,000 TOPS of computing power, which is way more than most chips on the market today. They’re leadin’ the pack, my friends.
And get this, automakers are already marketin’ their models based on the performance of their autonomous features. Just look at Polestar, the electric arm of Volvo. They’re braggin’ about their front radar and camera combo with a range of 200 meters and a 45-degree field of view. That’s some advanced stuff, my friends. But here’s the tricky part – if only one car company is advertisin’ its sensing capabilities, how do you know if it’s any good?
Well, don’t worry ’cause IDTechEx’s got your back. They’ve got reports that dive deep into what makes a good sensor for autonomous vehicles and even provide benchmarkin’ of the products on the market. They got your covered, folks.
Now, in the future, carmakers are gonna be sellin’ vehicles with marketing like “Nvidia inside” or “Mobileye inside.” It’s gonna be like buyin’ a laptop with “Intel inside.” They’re gonna become system integrators, takin’ components from different companies and puttin’ ’em together into their own branded packaging.
So, when you’re buyin’ a car, you’ll be lookin’ at how long the battery lasts, how nice the screens are, and what computer chip it’s got. That’s what’s gonna matter, my friends. The times, they are a-changin’ in the automotive industry, and IDTechEx is here to help you make sense of it all. That’s a wrap, folks.
