by Nada Welker | Mar 31, 2023 | Artificial Intelligence, Automotive Industry, Digital Health, Future Trends, Internet of Things, Know-How and inspiration, Market development & Trends, strategy in change
Metaverse is the latest buzzword in the technology industry and hot on everyone’s lips. What’s it all about exactly? Is it a new virtual world, a new reality that is changing the way we live and work, or just a fad that will soon disappear? In this article, we take a closer look at this new technology, its potential applications and its impact on the future.
On October 28, 2021, Facebook renamed itself Meta, reflecting the company’s long-term vision to create a shared virtual space that connects people from around the world. But Facebook, as a social media giant, has been doing that for a long time, right? True, but let’s try to dig a little deeper than that.
Imagine being part of a virtual world that looks and feels like the real world. You could explore cities, visit stores, and interact with others whenever you wish. You would be able to attend concerts, watch movies, or play any games you desire. You could even set up your own virtual house, decorate it, and invite friends over. Or you could attend virtual work meetings and conferences without leaving your house. For simplicity, you can think of a metaverse as the next generation of the internet.
Which technologies should be used?
For the metaverse to become a reality, it is important to understand that several new technologies must coexist: Among them, for example, virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), head-mounted displays (HMDs), AR Cloud, Internet of Things (IoT), 5G, artificial intelligence (AI) to name but a few. Meta has already invested heavily in these technologies, developing hardware such as its Oculus VR headsets, while AR glasses and wristband technologies are also in the works. According to Statista, the market value of such virtual reality and extended reality sets is expected to grow from $31 billion in 2023 to $52 billion in 2027, a remarkable 13.7% compound annual growth rate.
Source: https://www.statista.com/outlook/amo/ar-vr/worldwide#revenue
However, there are other important innovations that can make metaverse a strategic technology trend:
1. Web3: Web3 is a new stack of technologies that enables the development of decentralized web applications. It gives users control over their own identity and data, a feature that is critical to the metaverse.
2. Spatial Computing: This is another important innovation that paves the way for the metaverse. This is a technology that seamlessly connects the physical and digital worlds. This technology allows users to interact with virtual environments in a more natural and intuitive way than has ever been possible before.
3. Digital Twin of a Person (DToP): This is another exciting new innovation that reflects a unique individual and represents a near real-time synchronized multi-presence. This technology enables individuals to be present in multiple places simultaneously, in both digital and physical spaces.
4. Digital Twin of a Customer (DToC): Similar to DToP, DToC is a dynamic virtual image of a customer that simulates behavior and learns to emulate and anticipate it. This technology enables the creation of highly personalized experiences in the metaverse, where customers can be individuals, personas, groups of people, or even machines.
While Facebook’s recent rebranding as Meta and announcement of significant investment in building the metaverse has certainly brought this concept to the forefront, other tech giants such as Microsoft, Google, Nvidia, Qualcomm, and Amazon have also expressed interest in exploring the potential of the metaverse. In addition, smaller startups and gaming companies are also working to develop metaverse platforms. What we do know is that Meta, as an individual company, will not own the metaverse. What the ownership and management of the metaverse will look like in the future is a completely open book.
It’s easy to imagine the metaverse taking hold in the gaming and entertainment industries. What’s more exciting is, it also has the potential to go beyond these sectors and revolutionize the automotive industry.
One of the key areas where the metaverse could have a significant impact is in the development and testing of autonomous vehicles. The ability to create a virtual world where autonomous vehicles can be tested in a number of different scenarios would save a lot of time and resources compared to physical testing. The metaverse can also provide a virtual environment to speed up the prototyping process when developing a vehicle and use digital twins to optimize production processes. BMW’s virtual factory, for example, uses NVIDIA’s Omniverse software to create digital twins for each vehicle produced. Other OEMs, such as Hyundai, have also partnered with Unity, a game development platform, to build a meta-factory, which is a digital twin of the company’s physical factory supported by a metaverse platform.
In addition, the metaverse could be used to provide customers with a more immersive experience when purchasing a vehicle. According to a recent McKinsey and Co. survey, customers in the United States visited an average of only two showrooms before purchasing a vehicle, down from five in 2007. This trend could be leveraged to create a virtual showroom where customers can interact with different models and even customize their vehicles to their own specifications. This could revolutionize the car-buying experience, making it more appealing and personalized for consumers. Although a customer will always want to see the actual car in person before buying, this technology has the opportunity to reinvent car dealerships.
In summary, the metaverse will revolutionize the internet as we know it – including the automotive industry. Its impact will be felt in many ways, from development to manufacturing and distribution to customer services. Industry players who embrace the metaverse and use its capabilities to develop innovative products and services will undoubtedly have a competitive advantage over those who lag behind in its adaptation. The metaverse will create new revenue streams, transform the customer experience and enable new business models that were previously unimaginable. As we move toward a future where technology blurs the lines between the physical and digital worlds, the metaverse will play an increasingly central role in shaping the way we interact with each other. The question is not whether the metaverse will change the world, but rather how quickly and effectively industry players will adapt and embrace this new reality. The future is exciting, and the metaverse is undoubtedly one of the key drivers that will shape it.
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by Nada Welker | Jul 20, 2021 | Automotive Industry, Future Trends, New Mobility, strategy in change
The automotive industry is undergoing a profound transformation. Digitization and artificial intelligence are the two drivers that, individually but also in combination, have the potential to fundamentally change the business models of this industry. Back in 2018, we pointed out in our article “Smart Mobility- where is the journey of mobility heading?” that traditional carmakers will have to adapt their business models, because components that cannot be digitally controlled or integrated are no longer relevant for automotive manufacturing today. “Smart mobility” as a key element of the “smart city” is the order of the day, i.e. the increasing networking of transport infrastructure and means of transport, and only vehicles designed to match this integration are still marketable today. OEMs are making correspondingly great efforts to keep pace with developments and to influence and shape them through technical innovations and the adaptation of their business models. However, in doing so, especially with regard to the all-dominant topic of autonomous driving, they are encountering fierce competition from established IT giants, which is ensuring that there is a growing willingness to enter into strategic collaborations in important fields.
As a result of the advancing digital transformation and the increasing use of artificial intelligence, the entire automotive industry and its whole supply chain is undergoing a transformation process of unprecedented proportions. In this process, artificial intelligence offers completely new possibilities for adapting to the individual needs of vehicle owners and drivers. Functions such as the designable on-screen cockpit, voice control, control panels or touch screens for controlling interior functions such as heating, seats or navigation play a central role here. These technical innovations contribute to the fact that the car has long since grown beyond the stage of a simple means of transportation.
Last year, the software and technology company CARIAD was launched, a subsidiary of Europe’s largest automaker, the Volkswagen Group. CARIAD aims to accompany Volkswagen’s transformation into a digital, software-based mobility provider. This includes, among other things, the development of driver assistance systems and the software for autonomous driving. Furthermore, the focus is on increasing VW’s innovation speed, which should initially lead to a new automotive experience that seamlessly integrates into our digital world.
“The transformation in the automotive industry over the next ten to 15 years will be incomparable to what we have seen so far” (quote Volkswagen CEO Herbert Diess).
According to the Volkswagen Group’s own statements, 4,000 developers, engineers and designers from Audi, Porsche and Volkswagen are currently working worldwide on a uniform, central software for the vehicles of the entire Volkswagen Group. The uniform operating system is expected to find its way into all Volkswagen Group models starting in 2025. By that year, the number of employees is expected to grow to around 10,000. Almost 2.5 million EURO will be invested annually in the CARIAD software.
Current challenges for the automotive industry
In addition to the transformation to electromobility, advancing digitalization is causing fundamental changes in the automotive industry. While electromobility is exclusively about CO2-saving drive options, digitalization represents a more profound change for customers and, beyond that, for the entire mobility industry. Consequently, business models will change fundamentally in the future. This also becomes clear when looking at statistics that show how the distribution of sales in the automotive industry will change by 2030.
The statistics shown clearly indicate that digital services as well as new technologies and software solutions, which previously played hardly any role in the automotive industry, will account for a significant share of global automotive sales by 2030.
Competition gives rise to strategic cooperation
In the mobility services sector, the two competitors BMW and Daimler are entering into a strategic alliance to cooperate in some business areas in the future. The aim of their cooperation is to drive forward automated driving. By networking the expertise of the two technology leaders, the aim is to generate tangible benefits for customers as well as cost savings. As early as 2025, the first self-driving cars from Daimler and BMW are expected to be on the road on highways and parking without human control, i.e. with autonomy level four of five of the so-called SAE levels. The SAE levels describe how independently and autonomously a vehicle can act in road traffic. Level four includes complete control and monitoring on highways and when parking – but in city traffic, the driver must still intervene himself, which is why the steering wheel and pedals must still be present.
BMW and Daimler board members agree:
“Instead of individual stand-alone solutions, we are concerned with a reliable overall system that brings tangible benefits to our customers” (quote Daimler CEO Ola Källenius)
Waymo was launched in 2009 as Google’s self-driving car project. For several years, Waymo has been involved in the future operation of autonomous vehicles and holds the leading position in this sector.
“We are building the world’s most experienced driver” (quote on Waymo website).
Waymo’s vehicles have already been tested several times on public roads, numerous traffic situations have been recreated, and the collected data from these journeys has been evaluated and used for further developments. This is therefore not a driver assistance system in which the driver is still actively at the wheel, but a fully autonomous technology. The “Waymo Driver” has full control from pickup to destination. Using a perception system that decodes complex data collected by multiple sensors and accurately captures the environment, it can detect and identify pedestrians, vehicles, stop signs and more. The goal is to make traffic on the roads safer and easier. Since April 2, 2018, the first self-driving vehicles, without a driver behind the wheel, have been registered in the US state of California – so far without any major incidents or traffic accidents.
Apple as a serious competitor of the future?
What is certain is that the software in the vehicle will become one of the most important revenue generators in mobility in the future. Autonomous driving will make an important contribution to individual mobility. For this reason, it would not be unlikely for the IT group Apple to enter the automotive industry. Its distinctive software competencies could open up new opportunities and doors for the technology company. Reports about the probably planned “Apple Car” have been circulating for 2 years already. When and whether an electric vehicle from Apple will actually reach market maturity is currently still written in the stars – but it is not unlikely!
[infobox headline=”Summary in a nutshell”]
- Traditional automakers will have to adapt their business models, because components that cannot be digitally controlled or integrated are becoming less and less important.
- Artificial intelligence brings new opportunities for customization to meet the individual needs of the driver.
- The technology company CARIAD, a subsidiary of the Volkswagen Group, is taking its first steps toward transforming Volkswagen into a digital, software-based mobility provider.
- BMW and Daimler are entering into a collaboration to advance automated driving. As early as 2025, the first self-driving cars from Daimler and BMW are expected to be on the road.
- This is autonomy level four. It includes complete control and monitoring on highways and when parking.
- Waymo is engaged in the future operation of autonomous vehicles and takes the leading position in this field.
- It is a fully autonomous technology – so there is no need for a driver to be in the car.
- Digitalization is leading to a decisive transformation in the automotive industry – and we are right in the middle of it.
[/infobox]
If we allow ourselves a leap in time to the year 2030, the automotive industry could look like this:
- Mobility providers use higher-level traffic control to utilize traffic and reduce congestion.
- Autonomous vehicles make up at least 30% of vehicles in cities, including mainly buses and cabs.
- Extensive connected services and electric drives are implemented in new vehicles.
- Full synchronization of connected services in the car and smartphone apps.
- Possibility of switching on equipment elements for the vehicles.
- New production and logistics concepts: 3D printing of spare parts and components.
- Driver assistance systems have become so established and advanced that they can learn independently and individually from the respective driver through the use of AI and thus cover individual customer needs.
- At least 50% of business processes in the automotive industry are automated.
As a result of digitalization, the automotive industry is facing a decisive transformation: car manufacturers are being driven to adapt their vehicles to the spirit of the times and to rely on new digital business models. The trend toward autonomous driving is becoming increasingly relevant: Currently, we are still at the stage of partially automated driving using assistance systems. In some vehicles, you can already find functions such as automatic overtaking of other cars, automatic lane changing, and the ability to leave braking and parking to the vehicle without the driver’s influence. However, fully autonomous vehicles can so far only be used on test tracks with special permission. Yet, the full-scale deployment of autonomous vehicles is already being planned. But it is still uncertain when the necessary infrastructure and legal framework will be in place. We at magility will be happy to keep you up to date on further developments in the automotive industry. The transformation is picking up speed, and we are right in the middle of it. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us!
by Nada Welker | Jan 8, 2021 | Smart City
There is hardly any other area where safety and security are as fundamentally important as within one’s own four walls. On the outside, they have always repelled intruders or even wind and weather. Inside, they delimit rooms. Until now, however, walls have merely stood around the interior and, in addition to safeguarding the statics, served primarily as passive supports for utilities and useful ingredients such as electric, gas or water pipes, light switches or bathroom fittings. In the future, however, walls will be able to feel, and the saying: “walls have ears” will take on a whole new meaning with a smart building.
A Smart Building Will Think in the Future
In the age of the Internet of Things (IoT), artificial intelligence (AI) is finding its way into smart buildings even before they are entered by their users. IP cameras for surveillance, biometric readers for access control or thermostat sensors that control the room temperature depending on the number of people present are just a few examples of networking options that make a smart building really intelligent. Data from business processes are linked with those of the building on a building management platform, so that the AI can make suggestions for optimised use or maintenance even before a repair is necessary. This not only saves time, but also inconvenience and money. This is already a factor that can turn a smart building more and more into a so-called cognitive building.
Trend-Setting Smart Buildings in Germany
In the northwest of Cologne, one of the showcase buildings of future-oriented smart buildings, The Ship, was built last year. Commissioned by the Cologne-based start-up Fond Of, the building’s owners claim it is “Germany’s most digital office building” and uses an app to guide visitors to the person they are talking to, for example, or automatically adjusts the brightness of the occupied room according to the natural lighting conditions outside the smart building. The Cube was opened on Washingtonplatz in Berlin in February 2020. The ten-storey cube with an edge length of 42.5 metres and a glass facade that folds inwards on all sides contains 3800 sensors for intelligent control and use via app. The Hammerbrooklyn area in Hamburg is scheduled for completion in 2027. A pavilion with visions for the Digital Campus can already be visited there. Europe’s largest innovation quarter is to be built in Frankfurt am Main. Intelligent buildings will form an entire smart city there under the name SpringPark Valley. 330 residential units for around 6000 people, mainly in the form of serviced flats, will create a pleasant proximity to the planned 8000 workplaces. A neighbourhood app will efficiently guide users through time and space, always allowing them to find the room that best suits their registered needs. This is the plan for the smart buildings, which are to be built on 90,000 square metres and a gross floor area of approximately 242,000 square metres.
Federal Government Releases Funding for Smart Solutions
Despite the aforementioned giga-projects, builders are still hesitant about smart buildings in Germany. The Global pioneers are China and the United Arab Emirates. Since the beginning of the year, the German government has been trying to change this with the Federal Promotion for Efficient Buildings (BEG). From January 2021 onwards, 8 billion EURO are expected to help the development of smart buildings. The Federal Ministry of the Interior (BMI) also funds smart city projects every year. In 2016, the Federal Government established the Smart Cities Dialogue Platform, which promotes national and international exchange on urban development policy issues related to digitalisation. In 2021, 300 mEuro are planned for this.
Is Our Data Safe?
However, this development also raises the question of the other side of the coin of a smart building, because no matter how many euros, dollars or yuan a smart building costs, it is ultimately paid for with only one currency: the personal data of human users. A McKinsey study from 2018 describes technology in smart cities as a factor in increasing the quality of life in cities. For example, the study predicts a 20-30% decrease in commute time, with accompanying significant improvements in time management and air quality . “Data-based crime prediction and residential security systems” can reduce crime by up to 40%, according to the study. On the other hand, this brave new world in symbiosis with AI only works if people are willing to reveal their most personal likes and dislikes, habits and peculiarities , right down to biometric data. Who guarantees that this data will not be sold on to insurance companies, advertisers or authorities by those who collect it?
The international consulting firm Drees & Sommer in Stuttgart, which is active in the construction and real estate sector, gives the all-clear. For example, security gaps in the system of a smart building could be detected by applying hacker methods through so-called penetration tests. If the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and German law were observed, it would be impossible to draw conclusions about individual behaviour patterns. Finally, according to the consulting firm, anonymisation and pseudonymisation of data provide further security. In this context, a data protection officer is indispensable. Drees & Sommer and magility considering a comprehensive Cyber Security Strategy to be absolutely necessary for every owner, portfolio holder or investor in the field of smart buildings. At magility we implement Cyber Security Management Systems (CSMS) for the construction and housing industry.
Outlook Into the World of Cognitive Buildings
It started with sensors for temperature measurement and automated control for shading, ventilation and lighting systems. This has developed into a comprehensive ecosystem of sensors and actuators.
The self-optimizing control loop
The sensors record data, so to speak, as a “sense organ” of the Internet of Things (IoT) of e.g. rooms and their state. In a smart building, this data on conditions such as room temperature, air quality, doors and windows is transmitted to a gateway via an IoT communication network. There, it is consolidated with other data from mobile devices or from other IoT networks and forwarded to an application server, which assigns and interprets the master data and processes raw data. Algorithms and AI as well as deep learning systems (DL) are used here before the data is stored in the database. In addition, a control command is sent in real time to the actuator technology (drive, control and automation technology as well as mechatronics application), i.e. the command to the device to be controlled. Then it is the turn of the sensors again, and so a self-optimising, self-learning control loop is created.
Cognitive buildings, smart districts or the smart city are no longer just about a single intelligent building and its automated control. No, it is much more about the control of entire building clusters. Big data analytics and cooperation with trades such as energy suppliers and municipal utilities play a crucial role in this.
Control of entire building clusters
If the control loops of the smart buildings are in turn networked with the control loops of other intelligent devices and buildings as well as with the existing data of trades by means of cloud or platform applications, a higher-level control loop is created in which vast amounts of data come together and an entire fleet of buildings can be intelligently controlled. Exciting new applications are emerging that can contribute to overcoming current challenges, e.g. the climate crisis, which can be mitigated also by reducing the CO2 footprint over the entire building life cycle. Solutions to challenges related to the Corona crisis can also emerge through the intelligently managed organisation of new forms of work and the associated digitalisation. In addition, there are opportunities for new business models and for sustainable, cost-reduced building operation or sustainable facility management. In the future, the networking of devices and sensors will probably take place predominantly via cloud services and platforms. All existing unstructured data must be analysed and interpreted, and learning must take place from the data. Current data can already be compared with historical data from the IoT devices and used to control the control loop in real time. This may also lead to the discovery of as yet unknown correlations, which will help to gradually develop intelligent buildings into self-thinking, i.e. cognitive building complexes. The developments remain exciting.
We at magility are on top of the new possibilities and trends and are working together with start-ups that are intensively dealing with the further development of smart buildings into cognitive buildings and promise exciting high-tech solutions. Feel free to contact us if you are interested in more information on this exciting topic that touches us all.
