MotorTrend, the leading global automotive media company, announced today that it is joining leading software company, BlackBerry Limited ( NYSE: BB) (TSX: BB) to launch the Software-Defined Vehicle Innovator Awards. The new awards program looks to celebrate the innovators and pioneers who are leading the automotive industry’s once-in-a-century transformation from hardware to software which will redefine how cars are designed, built, driven and experienced.
For more than a century the bulk of a car’s value was in its mechanical, hardware, and other physical components. However, as personal technology has evolved, software and connected services will soon become the most important drivers of value, and a key differentiator, for automobile manufacturers. With the average new car containing more than 100 million lines of code and thousands of different computer chips already in use, independent research predicts that by 2030, electronics and software will account for 50% of car costs, up from about 30% today. This represents a fundamental shift in the automotive industry, as the software opportunity in autonomous cars will grow from less than one billion dollars today to $25 billion. According to recent forecasts, revenue from software-driven vehicles could account for as much as 50% of the automotive industry’s future earnings. *
As the creator of the most prestigious automotive awards – Car, Truck and SUV of the Year and its annual Power List – MotorTrend is joining forces with BlackBerry, whose BlackBerry® QNX® technology is embedded in over 215 million vehicles worldwide, to encourage OEMs and automotive suppliers to nominate outstanding pioneers, leaders and domain experts in recognition of their extraordinary work using software to push industry boundaries and improve the driving experience for consumers.
“Speaking with automakers and Tier 1s around the world, nothing is more important to them than software and electronics as both allow them to deliver compelling in-car experiences and differentiate against the competition,” said Mark Wilson, Chief Marketing Officer, BlackBerry. “To that end, we’re thrilled to be teaming up with MotorTrend to recognize and elevate the unsung heroes who have been systematically laying the stakes for the auto industry’s exciting next chapter. I firmly believe that we’ll see more change in the next ten years than we’ve seen in the previous hundred and, given that it’s the software heads that will determine what that future looks like, we felt it was particularly important to create the Software-Defined Vehicle Innovator Awards to recognize and celebrate individuals who are leading the way.”
“There is a massive technological shift going on in the auto industry and it’s not just defined by software, it’s driven by people: engineers, software developers, computer scientists,” said Ed Loh, Head of Editorial, MotorTrend Group. “These men and women are on the leading edge of imagining and executing the future of mobility. We’re putting our decades-long experience to work to help provide insight and perspective on these people and transformative work they are doing. With BlackBerry’s help, we want to highlight the pioneers, leaders and experts who are doing the most important work in the space, and effectively shaping our automotive future.”
Nominations are now open for the following three Software-Defined Vehicle Innovator Awards (SDVI) categories:
- Pioneer: This outstanding individual has demonstrably broken new ground within the SDV space through research, development, and application of new automotive software.
- Leader: This exceptional principal is in a senior management position and leads a team that is transforming the automotive industry through the broad adoption and application of software solutions.
- Domain Expert: This critical team member is a subject matter expert within a specific SDV discipline (e.g. advanced driver assistance systems, digital cockpit, over-the-air updates, autonomous, recruiting etc.)
Automakers and automotive suppliers can nominate their employees by visiting https://www.motortrend.com/sdv-form/. Each nomination is subject to a diligent screening process involving representatives exclusively from MotorTrend’s editorial team, who will review the submissions and establish a short list of finalists.
The nomination process closes at 11:59 pm PT on Monday, October 31 and the short list of finalists will be announced in the Fall of 2022. MotorTrend and BlackBerry will announce the first annual SDVI Awards winners during a ceremony on Thursday, January 5 in Las Vegas, in conjunction with CES 2023. For more information and rules please visit: https://www.motortrend.com/sdvawards.