Transforming Mobility – The Future of Software-Defined Vehicles and Fleet Management (Partha Goswami)

In this episode of Mile Marker, we welcome Partha Goswami, a strategist and futurist specializing in emerging technology and disruption in the mobility industry. Partha analyzes automotive trends, explores the startup ecosystem, and discusses the transformation of vehicles into software-defined platforms. We dive into the significant trends shaping the automotive industry, the impact of software-defined vehicles, and the evolving landscape of fleet management. Tune in for an insightful conversation on the future of mobility

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Transcript

WEBVTT - This file was automatically generated

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You are listening to the Mile Marker Podcast,

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where we explore trends and innovations in fleet automation

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and shared mobility, helping fleet based businesses make

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better informed decisions

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and achieve full digital transformation.

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Welcome everyone to the Mile Marker podcast.

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Today we have a special guest, Partha Goswami,

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a strategist fu

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and consultants specializing in emerging technology

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and disruption in the mobility industry.

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Partha analyzes evolving trends

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and automotive technology monitors shifts in the value chain

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and explores the startup ecosystem.

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His expertise spans wireless connectivity, safety,

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autonomous technology,

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and the transformation

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of automobiles into software-defined platforms.

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Partha has spoken at forums like Auto Tech, SAE, CVTA

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and LA Automobility. Beyond work,

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He's an avid bird photographer who finds solace in nature.

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Welcome, Partha. How are you?

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Very good. Thank you for the invite,

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and I'm really delighted

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to talk about all the changes happening

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in the mobility industry.

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It's really like the movie, you know,

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everything everywhere happening at the same time.

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It really is. It really is.

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And from the Ridecell side, we have Mark Thomas, EVP

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of Strategic Alliances and Marketing.

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Welcome, Mark. Thanks.

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And so you have a really strong background in understanding

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emerging trends in the automotive industry,

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and as you kind of just mentioned there,

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it's kinda like everything is happening all at once.

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But what are some of the most significant trends

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that you've observed over the past decade

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or even just five years?

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Yes. So the commonly used acronym that you use, uh,

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case C-A-S-E. C for connectivity, A

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for Autonomous S for software and services

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and E for electrification.

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I think that, uh, describes the changes happening

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or the basic changes happening pretty well.

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However, the big change that I would, I would draw attention

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to is really the transformation of the vehicle itself.

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The vehicle instead of a one off device

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is really becoming a platform.

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It's being engineered totally differently.

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We'll talk more about it.

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And that has really give given rise to the idea

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of software defined vehicle.

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And I really think that's the biggest change

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happening in the industry right now.

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And how is that affecting both, um, I mean how

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consumers interact with their vehicles,

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but then also on the business model side, right?

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You've got, um, the OEMs and,

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and, uh, even fleet companies that are having to kind

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of rethink how it's not just leasing a car

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...or selling a car.

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Now you have all these other opportunities, right? Yeah,

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Yeah, yeah, exactly.

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And I think consumers are really at the heart of this change

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because right from the day the first smartphone was

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introduced, consumers really, uh, were,

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were really delighted

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to see a device which is much more than what it is supposed

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to be, which is calling people.

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But it is really a platform from,

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for doing many different things, number one

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and number two, it, it continuously changes.

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Okay? It gets updated, right?

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So to a large extent, that particular consumer desire

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has been behind this particular

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transformation that we are seeing.

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Okay. Uh, more software centric product development,

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et cetera, that we are beginning to see the early, early,

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you know, uh, first few, first phases

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of that particular change.

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Uh, your question was, okay, how is

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that affecting other things?

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And you mentioned fleet, uh, specifically, uh,

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I think the fleet really is undergoing the idea

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of fleet is really undergoing a big change.

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It used to be a very sleepy area.

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Typically, you know, fleet means you have a contractor

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coming and he or she has a fleet of 20 vehicles,

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or maybe it's a big FedEx

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or some other company who has thousands

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of trucks, et cetera.

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But nothing more than that.

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But really, you know, uh, call it the Amazon effect,

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but really the idea of, uh, delivery has exploded.

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People's, uh,

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shopping has changed from actual physical shopping

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to online, and that has given rise to this idea

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of last mile delivery.

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Uh, and also I, I would say there is a little bit

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of residual covid effect where people got more used

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to get things delivered at their home.

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These are some of the impacts.

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These are not the only things,

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but, so that's kind of number one,

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which is driving the market for fleets, right?

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But more importantly, fleet is no longer the sleepy,

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you know, contractor's vehicle anymore.

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It's really very sophisticated, uh, machine

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or it's going to become more sophisticated, you know,

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connectivity, uh, complete end-to-end, seamless,

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um, uh, data analytics.

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Those are becoming the hallmarks of fleet mobility.

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And that has given rise to this idea of fleet management

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and the whole new industry around it.

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So those are some of the big changes happening.

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I have a question. So for the software-defined vehicles,

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uh, I think of that more as the mobile phone

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or the consumer electronic companies

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changing the chip architecture that they're using.

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But fundamentally, the operating system, the interface

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and how consumers experience those devices

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don't necessarily change

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unless maybe there's new feature capabilities

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that are enabled by going from one, you know, the, the A one

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or the M1 to the M two.

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What, what is the software defined vehicle

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consumer experience, and how does that change?

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Because to me, it just seemed like streamlining

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manufacturing processes, uh, establishing a common bus, uh,

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and just making the cost of goods easier

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to manufacture vehicles.

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Mm-Hmm. Okay.

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So, uh, let me first make a statement that a lot

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of people try to call a software defined vehicle

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as smartphone on wheels.

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Okay? It, the, the real fact can be farther than that, okay?

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Because the phone

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and the car, the vehicle are very different objects, okay?

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Phone, you know, if something fails, it's an annoyance.

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Okay? If the car fails, it's a life

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and death question, right?

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So suddenly we are not trying to equate the two together.

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But, uh, coming back to the, the notion of

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what exactly is smart, uh, software defined vehicle,

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it's really the idea of, um,

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separating the hardware from

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the software in the vehicle itself.

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So, and, and the manufacturing

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and all these other issues will come later.

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But let me start with the machine itself.

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The car itself, okay?

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Traditionally, the, the way cars are designed, it's a one

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of device and all the electronics that goes into it,

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it comes as an embedded, embedded product.

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So you want to make some, add some new function, okay?

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You add a new computer to it.

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What do you call ECU, um, uh, electronic control unit

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that comes as a self-contained black box.

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Okay? Software is all everything written,

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and then I need something else.

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I bring another of those black box. Okay?

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But the idea of this platform

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that I've been talking about earlier, uh, is really the,

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where you separate the two, okay?

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Your hardware is there

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and then all your software applications there,

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and then you have an operating system

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that connects the two, alright?

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And what that gives you, uh, it gives you the idea

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that you are no longer selling a product, which is fixed.

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Okay? Your best car is the car on your very

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first day of purchase.

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But now I'm saying

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because I have an underlying hardware,

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which is decoupled, okay?

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I'm creating new services, new software, new functionality

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as I go, keep going forward.

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And that idea of continuous improvement, okay,

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is really the idea behind software defined vehicle.

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Now, all the other things

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that you mentioned Will is going to happen.

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It, you know, how as you manufacture them, the idea

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of streamlining the total manufacturing systems

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very different from the existing

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system is all going to happen.

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But the core idea in my mind is

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how the machine itself is getting re-engineered make sense?

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The over the air updates certainly allow you to

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debunk the car and saves you, uh, trips into the dealership.

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But, you know, we, we used to have dealer visits to,

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you know, flash the firmware things along that line, right?

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Mm-Hmm. Uh, but you're saying that when the car is designed

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to take incremental, almost operating system upgrades, that,

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uh, you can do more of a Tesla experience downloading, uh,

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a feature, for instance, that people pay for.

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Um, so it's, it's adding the capabilities

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to have a more modular experience ahead of

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actually having these modular experiences to sell,

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Right? So, and

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like you said, you know,

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when Tesla first released the s uh, more

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or less in 2012, that was really the key value proposition

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of the product, okay?

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It was because consumers did not see what's,

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what's inside the car.

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They didn't really open the hood

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and got to know all the details,

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but what they saw was they woke up on a,

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on a certain morning and said, oh my goodness, my, uh, uh,

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suspension settings have changed.

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Okay? And that's a huge excite for the customers.

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And, uh, that's what they kept talking about.

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And that got the notice of most other car makers.

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They said somehow we have to get to that particular stage.

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And it's easier said than done

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because you can do it in one shot,

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but then how do you scale it up for your entire, you know,

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uh, portfolio of millions of cars? That's why

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The 11 years later, they're still trying to do this.

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Yeah. And I think the scaling up

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and wanting to do it, those are probably the two big issues

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because I have worked in General Motors

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and honestly, uh, I was part of the, uh, volt, uh, uh,

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the product, the development team for Chevy Volt,

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and, uh, believe it

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or not, uh, back in, when was it, maybe 2008, my,

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my test car was getting regular software updates

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as it was being developed.

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Okay? And,

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and I would be, I would get a note, you know,

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that keep the car, you know, in a, in a, in an area which

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where you can get the signal, it was not based on wifi.

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And so we are getting updates.

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The thing was, what GM did not do, it did not scale up

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that capability, number one.

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And number two, it did not really use that, uh, you know,

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capability for upgrading the product.

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Okay? It was used internally

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for making a lot of improvements.

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So it was not necessarily the lack of capability, I think,

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uh, it was something else, right?

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But again, I think now the industry is a, is at a point

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where this is not looked as a novelty anymore.

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Everybody's doing it, and we'll continue to see more

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and more of it going forward.

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You know, when, as you're talking from the consumer side,

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uh, it obviously raises up the, uh, sort

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of privacy data privacy issue,

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which is a whole other podcast, right?

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Um, but from whether it's a consumer vehicle

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or a fleet vehicle, because you have the ability to do, um,

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software updates and continuously upgrading the vehicle,

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that means that potentially, you know, a fleet

253
00:11:35.585 --> 00:11:38.725
or consumer, um, their vehicle will last longer, right?

254
00:11:38.725 --> 00:11:41.565
Because it's, you know, they're getting new features

255
00:11:42.115 --> 00:11:43.365
from a fleet standpoint.

256
00:11:43.365 --> 00:11:46.885
Maybe it's more safety features, maybe it's, uh, how to,

257
00:11:46.885 --> 00:11:48.765
you know, stay engaged with the driver

258
00:11:49.145 --> 00:11:53.805
or, um, you know, having better read on the, the,

259
00:11:53.945 --> 00:11:56.285
the status of the vehicle and does the driver need to go

260
00:11:56.385 --> 00:11:58.565
and, and switch out the vehicle?

261
00:11:58.565 --> 00:12:00.685
Mm-Hmm. So, uh, can you talk a little bit about

262
00:12:00.745 --> 00:12:01.885
how that might change?

263
00:12:02.305 --> 00:12:07.045
Um, I, I guess the, the, the longevity, uh,

264
00:12:07.065 --> 00:12:10.925
of a vehicle, like the vehicle lifecycle management of it,

265
00:12:10.935 --> 00:12:13.605
where, you know, instead of, you know,

266
00:12:13.605 --> 00:12:15.405
that you're gonna have to switch out a car every 10 years,

267
00:12:15.625 --> 00:12:19.325
you might get 12 years out of it or maybe even longer, um,

268
00:12:19.345 --> 00:12:20.565
and how that affects things.

269
00:12:21.035 --> 00:12:23.885
Yeah. So there are actually two sides of this question.

270
00:12:24.145 --> 00:12:27.565
One is the physical longevity of the vehicle. Okay?

271
00:12:27.765 --> 00:12:30.245
I mean, everything falls up, but after a certain time.

272
00:12:30.625 --> 00:12:32.045
But we are talking about physical

273
00:12:32.045 --> 00:12:33.245
longevity, that's one thing.

274
00:12:33.435 --> 00:12:35.685
Okay? And the other thing is actually the

275
00:12:35.685 --> 00:12:36.845
freshness of the product.

276
00:12:37.885 --> 00:12:40.895
Okay? So, so when you talk about software defined vehicle,

277
00:12:41.035 --> 00:12:43.455
we are actually talking more about the latter.

278
00:12:44.005 --> 00:12:47.295
Okay? I, I think the auto industry is at a point where

279
00:12:48.205 --> 00:12:50.215
gone are the days where, you know,

280
00:12:50.215 --> 00:12:51.895
the card fall apart after two, three years.

281
00:12:51.895 --> 00:12:53.735
Everything is pretty rugged and reliable.

282
00:12:54.075 --> 00:12:55.215
So I think the basic quality,

283
00:12:55.215 --> 00:12:57.775
basic reliability is a lot higher than needs to be,

284
00:12:58.315 --> 00:12:59.695
um, number one.

285
00:12:59.695 --> 00:13:02.495
But what you're looking at is the car is no longer stale.

286
00:13:02.855 --> 00:13:04.095
I think I mentioned that. Mm-Hmm.

287
00:13:04.175 --> 00:13:08.295
In a traditional hardware centric vehicle, the best day

288
00:13:08.295 --> 00:13:11.575
of the vehicle, uh, is the day one, okay?

289
00:13:12.005 --> 00:13:13.735
When all the features are there,

290
00:13:14.275 --> 00:13:16.055
and then nothing is added on.

291
00:13:16.155 --> 00:13:20.295
But now, because of my capability to use software

292
00:13:20.915 --> 00:13:23.535
to either update a feature or add new feature

293
00:13:24.035 --> 00:13:27.655
or reconfigure a old feature, whatever that be, okay,

294
00:13:27.735 --> 00:13:31.655
I can achieve all three periodically over time

295
00:13:31.995 --> 00:13:33.015
of the ownership.

296
00:13:33.355 --> 00:13:35.615
So to a owner, first owner, second owner,

297
00:13:36.395 --> 00:13:38.095
or whatever that be, he

298
00:13:38.095 --> 00:13:41.015
or she'll continue to see new features over time.

299
00:13:41.195 --> 00:13:43.175
So I think that's probably the best

300
00:13:43.395 --> 00:13:46.055
or the, the more important impact

301
00:13:46.595 --> 00:13:49.135
of this new vehicle development

302
00:13:49.155 --> 00:13:50.695
or what you call software defined vehicle.

303
00:13:52.395 --> 00:13:54.535
And along these same lines, you know, some of the things

304
00:13:54.535 --> 00:13:56.055
that you've talked about in your writings

305
00:13:56.075 --> 00:13:58.255
or in, in your, um, uh, speeches

306
00:13:58.255 --> 00:13:59.735
that you've given at different events, mm-Hmm.

307
00:13:59.915 --> 00:14:02.055
Uh, data standardization has been

308
00:14:02.125 --> 00:14:03.495
something that you've touched on.

309
00:14:03.675 --> 00:14:05.935
Can you, uh, talk about that a little bit and,

310
00:14:06.275 --> 00:14:07.815
and react to that?

311
00:14:07.875 --> 00:14:09.695
And what are the, what are kind the struggles

312
00:14:09.755 --> 00:14:13.335
and do you see it actually the, the, you know,

313
00:14:13.335 --> 00:14:15.255
the manufacturer is actually agreeing on it

314
00:14:15.275 --> 00:14:16.815
and sort of data standardization?

315
00:14:17.445 --> 00:14:21.695
Yeah. So, uh, so far until now, you know,

316
00:14:21.695 --> 00:14:25.095
every car company generates its, its data

317
00:14:25.095 --> 00:14:27.375
because we have tons of sensors in the car,

318
00:14:27.595 --> 00:14:29.135
and there are a lot of data

319
00:14:29.135 --> 00:14:30.415
that comes out of the car, right?

320
00:14:30.715 --> 00:14:33.295
But every car company almost does it in a

321
00:14:33.295 --> 00:14:34.455
proprietary way, okay?

322
00:14:34.695 --> 00:14:36.055
I have my own data formats

323
00:14:36.255 --> 00:14:38.015
'cause somebody else has their own data formats

324
00:14:38.595 --> 00:14:40.055
and that there's a big issue

325
00:14:40.055 --> 00:14:42.215
because if I now want some third party

326
00:14:42.275 --> 00:14:45.695
to develop application for me, okay, I can, uh,

327
00:14:45.895 --> 00:14:48.135
I need a very specific customized

328
00:14:48.135 --> 00:14:49.695
application development, okay?

329
00:14:49.795 --> 00:14:52.485
But look at the entire Apple ecosystem

330
00:14:52.705 --> 00:14:55.125
or the entire Android ecosystem, you know,

331
00:14:55.125 --> 00:14:58.485
you are a developer, you can develop it for your Apple

332
00:14:58.665 --> 00:15:00.445
or for your entire Android ecosystem

333
00:15:00.445 --> 00:15:02.725
because you know exactly what the data formats are,

334
00:15:02.755 --> 00:15:05.045
what the APIs are, you know, there's no issue.

335
00:15:05.065 --> 00:15:07.925
You know, what, what's, what's, what data you can use

336
00:15:07.945 --> 00:15:09.165
for whatever functions.

337
00:15:10.495 --> 00:15:12.475
The same has not been the case.

338
00:15:12.975 --> 00:15:15.755
So I think there is a, there is an acknowledgement

339
00:15:15.985 --> 00:15:20.435
that we need to standardize our data formats across the

340
00:15:20.715 --> 00:15:23.115
industry, across all car companies, okay?

341
00:15:23.775 --> 00:15:26.355
And that is happening right now. Okay?

342
00:15:26.525 --> 00:15:28.395
There, there are, uh, there,

343
00:15:28.395 --> 00:15:31.475
there is a specific consortium called cossa Connected

344
00:15:31.475 --> 00:15:34.075
Vehicle, whatever, I forget the acronym right now.

345
00:15:34.695 --> 00:15:36.915
And they have, they're developing something called vehicle

346
00:15:37.315 --> 00:15:39.315
VSS, vehicle signal specification,

347
00:15:39.605 --> 00:15:43.635
which is essentially a common taxonomy of data.

348
00:15:44.065 --> 00:15:47.835
Okay? If I call a particular data, whatever, BOD,

349
00:15:47.835 --> 00:15:49.475
it's BOD everywhere, okay?

350
00:15:49.495 --> 00:15:52.035
For all everybody in the industry, whoever is developing,

351
00:15:52.095 --> 00:15:53.275
that's happening right now.

352
00:15:53.735 --> 00:15:58.035
Now, the question is, um, how, how is the car industry,

353
00:15:58.575 --> 00:16:02.995
um, handling the idea of this whole, you know,

354
00:16:03.135 --> 00:16:04.315
the software defined vehicle

355
00:16:04.375 --> 00:16:06.915
and all these new functions that I'll develop,

356
00:16:06.935 --> 00:16:08.155
and I'll monetize that

357
00:16:08.265 --> 00:16:11.075
because now I have so much data at my disposal,

358
00:16:11.275 --> 00:16:12.755
I can create these new functions

359
00:16:12.755 --> 00:16:14.715
that I will offer to the consumers.

360
00:16:15.515 --> 00:16:17.995
I, I think that is not happening yet. Right?

361
00:16:18.295 --> 00:16:20.995
And the main, the main challenge is one

362
00:16:20.995 --> 00:16:23.955
of the main challenges is the standardization of data, okay?

363
00:16:23.955 --> 00:16:26.275
Which again, is being addressed by some of this consortium.

364
00:16:26.535 --> 00:16:28.075
So that has to happen, okay?

365
00:16:28.185 --> 00:16:32.155
However, uh, the auto industry probably, probably went ahead

366
00:16:32.155 --> 00:16:33.435
of itself, okay?

367
00:16:33.535 --> 00:16:37.795
And maybe around 2016, 17, we heard a lot of announcements

368
00:16:38.065 --> 00:16:40.835
that we are going to have a complete new steam

369
00:16:40.835 --> 00:16:43.355
of monetization because we have so much data as our,

370
00:16:43.355 --> 00:16:46.835
at our disposal that the fact of the matter is, you know,

371
00:16:47.355 --> 00:16:50.595
industry really hasn't, uh, hasn't learned yet how

372
00:16:50.595 --> 00:16:52.755
to extract the data, how to do the analytics,

373
00:16:52.815 --> 00:16:54.835
and how to create the apps based

374
00:16:54.835 --> 00:16:55.995
on data and so on and so forth.

375
00:16:56.175 --> 00:16:59.875
So 2016, uh, McKensey wrote an article that this,

376
00:17:00.065 --> 00:17:04.435
this whole new database economy is going to be $800 billion.

377
00:17:04.435 --> 00:17:06.755
Nothing happened. 2021, they came back

378
00:17:06.755 --> 00:17:09.555
and says, well, there are these issues that, you know,

379
00:17:09.555 --> 00:17:12.115
why it's not happening, and it's probably the market is

380
00:17:12.275 --> 00:17:15.195
probably going to be much less, maybe $400 billion.

381
00:17:15.735 --> 00:17:18.835
We are at 2024. Now, this still hasn't happened.

382
00:17:19.635 --> 00:17:22.555
Few companies came about companies like autonomy.

383
00:17:22.705 --> 00:17:25.875
They were basically designed as data brokers, okay?

384
00:17:25.895 --> 00:17:29.075
And they actually were set up to kind

385
00:17:29.075 --> 00:17:30.195
of data broker the data,

386
00:17:30.615 --> 00:17:33.435
but that wasn't enough to scale their business, okay?

387
00:17:33.455 --> 00:17:34.675
So at some point in time, they have

388
00:17:34.675 --> 00:17:36.275
to fold their business, right?

389
00:17:36.735 --> 00:17:40.075
So hopefully we are at a point, everybody understands the,

390
00:17:40.215 --> 00:17:41.835
all the challenges and the weaknesses,

391
00:17:42.495 --> 00:17:45.395
and we have consortiums like Visa that's helping

392
00:17:45.895 --> 00:17:49.195
to create a more standardized data taxonomy.

393
00:17:49.625 --> 00:17:52.205
So I'm very hopeful in the next few years we'll be,

394
00:17:52.215 --> 00:17:56.595
we'll make a lot more progress in creating the solutions

395
00:17:56.595 --> 00:18:01.235
that we need for to create this new database, uh, you know,

396
00:18:01.495 --> 00:18:03.835
new business monetization, whatever you call it,

397
00:18:03.855 --> 00:18:05.275
new functions, new experience.

398
00:18:06.175 --> 00:18:10.475
But I think people don't have to wait for there

399
00:18:10.575 --> 00:18:12.075
to be a data standard,

400
00:18:12.375 --> 00:18:17.035
and then the OEMs to switch to this new data standard.

401
00:18:17.855 --> 00:18:20.395
Uh, there's certainly several companies now that

402
00:18:20.945 --> 00:18:23.915
provide data normalization and cleansing services.

403
00:18:24.215 --> 00:18:27.275
So you just call them

404
00:18:27.975 --> 00:18:30.915
and say, you know, what's the current fuel level reading?

405
00:18:31.455 --> 00:18:34.195
And they will provide it back in a standard answer no matter

406
00:18:34.195 --> 00:18:36.755
which make and model that vehicle is.

407
00:18:36.855 --> 00:18:39.915
So the good news is we can solve it with private

408
00:18:40.715 --> 00:18:42.155
entrepreneurship, uh,

409
00:18:42.155 --> 00:18:45.515
because it does take a long time to hit the standardization,

410
00:18:46.455 --> 00:18:49.715
uh, of a lingua franca for vehicles.

411
00:18:50.735 --> 00:18:53.395
No, no, absolutely. And, and as I said, you know, just

412
00:18:53.395 --> 00:18:55.595
because you are proprietary doesn't mean you are limited.

413
00:18:55.815 --> 00:18:57.995
So it's not like the car companies

414
00:18:58.015 --> 00:18:59.835
or their suppliers are sitting there

415
00:18:59.835 --> 00:19:02.275
and doing nothing, lot is being done.

416
00:19:03.765 --> 00:19:06.555
Their are companies who are offering what they call function

417
00:19:06.555 --> 00:19:10.715
and demand, where you can, can, you can order

418
00:19:11.345 --> 00:19:13.035
something, some function

419
00:19:13.165 --> 00:19:15.875
after the post purchase and it can be added.

420
00:19:16.135 --> 00:19:18.075
The gm et cetera, in particular, they have a feature called,

421
00:19:18.255 --> 00:19:19.635
uh, the level two autonomous.

422
00:19:19.755 --> 00:19:21.995
I think the one from GM is called Super Cruise.

423
00:19:22.415 --> 00:19:25.515
The one from, uh, Ford is called, uh, blue Cruise.

424
00:19:25.615 --> 00:19:28.315
And, you know, other companies has other similar functions.

425
00:19:28.695 --> 00:19:31.425
And those things, you can actually don't have

426
00:19:31.425 --> 00:19:33.825
to have them write it during your purchase.

427
00:19:33.825 --> 00:19:35.625
You can buy them later. It can be triggered,

428
00:19:35.625 --> 00:19:37.585
it can be activated, it can be deactivated.

429
00:19:37.925 --> 00:19:39.425
So there are things happening,

430
00:19:39.765 --> 00:19:42.905
but the explosion that we,

431
00:19:42.925 --> 00:19:45.625
it was en envisioned back in 2016,

432
00:19:45.935 --> 00:19:47.465
that explosion hasn't happened.

433
00:19:49.115 --> 00:19:52.695
Uh, when I also think of data, I also think of, you know,

434
00:19:54.015 --> 00:19:55.835
the utilization and the action

435
00:19:55.835 --> 00:19:56.875
that you take from the data, right?

436
00:19:56.875 --> 00:19:59.035
Like, you can have all this data coming from all these

437
00:19:59.035 --> 00:20:03.515
vehicles, but if there's no way to quickly turn it

438
00:20:03.515 --> 00:20:06.635
around into, let's say, you know, some automations

439
00:20:06.855 --> 00:20:11.605
or, uh, you know, triggers for, oh, you know, they're,

440
00:20:11.755 --> 00:20:14.245
they're going into this part of town

441
00:20:14.345 --> 00:20:16.685
and, uh, I don't know, there's gonna be, there's,

442
00:20:16.685 --> 00:20:17.845
you know, there's a roadblock.

443
00:20:18.465 --> 00:20:20.165
Uh, and so we should

444
00:20:20.165 --> 00:20:21.805
automatically reroute them or something.

445
00:20:21.925 --> 00:20:24.725
I mean, very kind of off the top of my head example,

446
00:20:24.825 --> 00:20:25.885
but I just feel like there's,

447
00:20:25.995 --> 00:20:27.725
there's also the action part of it.

448
00:20:28.285 --> 00:20:29.405
I feel like, you know, the ouo

449
00:20:29.405 --> 00:20:32.315
and the autonomous, they were, it was volumes

450
00:20:32.315 --> 00:20:33.915
and volumes of data, but there wasn't a

451
00:20:33.915 --> 00:20:34.955
lot of action behind it.

452
00:20:35.255 --> 00:20:37.995
So I think that was part of what was missing as well.

453
00:20:38.075 --> 00:20:39.635
I don't know if you have any thoughts on that

454
00:20:41.525 --> 00:20:43.365
Suddenly, so that, that is the other part, right?

455
00:20:43.385 --> 00:20:45.205
You get the data, but what do you do with it?

456
00:20:45.305 --> 00:20:47.005
You know, what kind of analytics you use

457
00:20:47.085 --> 00:20:48.925
and what kind of new innovation

458
00:20:49.025 --> 00:20:50.165
you create out of that, right?

459
00:20:50.325 --> 00:20:52.165
I think that's the part that was missing.

460
00:20:52.305 --> 00:20:54.165
Now, individually, car companies are doing

461
00:20:54.235 --> 00:20:55.245
bits and pieces of that.

462
00:20:55.515 --> 00:20:58.405
There's something called usage based insurance, UBI,

463
00:20:58.835 --> 00:21:01.245
that many car companies have been doing for a while.

464
00:21:01.705 --> 00:21:03.925
Uh, essentially the idea that, you know, if you,

465
00:21:03.985 --> 00:21:07.085
if I provide certain, you know, data, hopefully

466
00:21:07.085 --> 00:21:08.525
with permission of the consumer,

467
00:21:09.065 --> 00:21:12.005
and then that can impact their, you know, uh, hopefully

468
00:21:12.565 --> 00:21:15.885
positively if the driver is more conservative in driving

469
00:21:15.985 --> 00:21:17.405
and that they can get a better deal.

470
00:21:17.405 --> 00:21:19.965
That's the idea behind, behind usage based insurance, right?

471
00:21:20.345 --> 00:21:23.245
And there are, uh, businesses that are slowly evolving in

472
00:21:23.245 --> 00:21:24.885
that direction, direction.

473
00:21:24.885 --> 00:21:27.325
So, so there are bits and pieces of that that's happening,

474
00:21:27.505 --> 00:21:31.965
but in a, in a bigger sense that I, the car generates, it's,

475
00:21:31.965 --> 00:21:34.725
it's a hotbed of so many interesting data.

476
00:21:35.065 --> 00:21:36.405
Mm-Hmm, what do I do with it?

477
00:21:36.505 --> 00:21:38.725
How can I create new services, new functions,

478
00:21:38.785 --> 00:21:40.245
new, you know, features

479
00:21:41.745 --> 00:21:44.645
The heuristic, if they were to learn from

480
00:21:45.585 --> 00:21:49.925
the transformation of, uh, web and.com

481
00:21:50.025 --> 00:21:52.525
to the mobile revolution, the companies

482
00:21:52.555 --> 00:21:56.125
that created services optimized for mobile

483
00:21:56.585 --> 00:22:00.565
and using the mobile only, uh, technologies

484
00:22:01.195 --> 00:22:02.645
were those that succeeded.

485
00:22:03.065 --> 00:22:05.285
So for instance, MapQuest, where we were just used

486
00:22:05.285 --> 00:22:07.405
to printing things out and holding them up in the car

487
00:22:07.595 --> 00:22:10.965
because there was no GPS on your laptop

488
00:22:10.965 --> 00:22:15.045
or your desktop, um, you know, gave way to Google Maps

489
00:22:15.045 --> 00:22:18.005
and having folks navigate themselves around, you know,

490
00:22:18.435 --> 00:22:22.285
MySpace became, gave way to Instagram because of the camera.

491
00:22:23.425 --> 00:22:27.445
And the concept then for vehicles is

492
00:22:27.875 --> 00:22:32.845
what are the unique new sensors that the vehicles have

493
00:22:33.235 --> 00:22:34.725
that you don't have on your phone?

494
00:22:34.725 --> 00:22:38.645
Because you're not gonna pay for a Netflix subscription,

495
00:22:38.905 --> 00:22:41.525
so you can watch it on your screen when you can just cast

496
00:22:41.595 --> 00:22:44.245
what you have on your phone to the back screens,

497
00:22:44.245 --> 00:22:45.925
or just, you know, watch it on a tablet.

498
00:22:46.665 --> 00:22:49.085
So the uses based insurance is a great example.

499
00:22:49.385 --> 00:22:52.005
It knows your driving style.

500
00:22:52.545 --> 00:22:54.925
It knows whether you're speeding, it knows

501
00:22:54.945 --> 00:22:57.125
how many miles that you're driving.

502
00:22:57.305 --> 00:22:58.965
And so those become examples.

503
00:22:59.455 --> 00:23:03.925
Other services that only the vehicle may know about would be

504
00:23:04.125 --> 00:23:06.325
services that can help you, uh,

505
00:23:06.375 --> 00:23:10.365
understand your battery health, predictive maintenance

506
00:23:10.365 --> 00:23:13.725
as a service that's no longer about scheduled maintenance,

507
00:23:13.865 --> 00:23:16.205
but maintenance based upon the specific

508
00:23:16.355 --> 00:23:17.485
wear and tear of that vehicle.

509
00:23:17.705 --> 00:23:22.085
So the, so we should be looking at what are the data streams

510
00:23:22.115 --> 00:23:25.765
that are both unique to the vehicle and valuable,

511
00:23:25.995 --> 00:23:29.765
because trying to replicate what a person has on their phone

512
00:23:30.505 --> 00:23:34.605
on a screen in the dash is a surefire recipe

513
00:23:35.465 --> 00:23:39.445
for, uh, not selling very many of those consumer services.

514
00:23:40.505 --> 00:23:44.125
100%. That's why I say car is not a smartphone on wheels.

515
00:23:44.125 --> 00:23:45.525
Right? Right, right. And,

516
00:23:45.545 --> 00:23:47.165
and there are many unique, in fact,

517
00:23:47.165 --> 00:23:48.885
there are too many unique sets of data

518
00:23:48.885 --> 00:23:52.165
that gets generated from the everyday driving,

519
00:23:52.305 --> 00:23:53.485
you know, road condition.

520
00:23:53.635 --> 00:23:57.645
Okay? How, how my, if I'm, you know, if the cars are

521
00:23:58.205 --> 00:24:00.445
breaking too much, maybe there is traffic backup.

522
00:24:00.985 --> 00:24:04.765
If there are, if my cars skidding, I'm getting a lot

523
00:24:04.765 --> 00:24:05.805
of reports of skidding.

524
00:24:05.805 --> 00:24:07.685
Okay, maybe there is black ice forming

525
00:24:07.875 --> 00:24:10.205
When the wipers go on, guess what?

526
00:24:10.235 --> 00:24:12.885
It's raining micro information. Right?

527
00:24:12.885 --> 00:24:15.605
Exactly. Yeah. So those are some common examples,

528
00:24:15.605 --> 00:24:17.285
but you can expand that into many,

529
00:24:17.285 --> 00:24:19.165
many other potential use cases

530
00:24:19.595 --> 00:24:21.885
that you can get all from all these

531
00:24:22.005 --> 00:24:23.205
different sensors in the vehicle.

532
00:24:23.665 --> 00:24:25.525
And also, not just the vehicle itself,

533
00:24:25.525 --> 00:24:26.565
but also people, okay.

534
00:24:26.565 --> 00:24:28.805
What our behaviors are. So there are two parts, right?

535
00:24:28.905 --> 00:24:31.725
One, one, what car is seeing what the car is experiencing,

536
00:24:32.355 --> 00:24:34.525
what the consumers or the drivers

537
00:24:34.665 --> 00:24:36.165
or the passengers they're experiencing,

538
00:24:36.305 --> 00:24:37.645
how they're behaving, okay?

539
00:24:38.235 --> 00:24:41.005
What kind of music you listen to your vehicle, okay?

540
00:24:41.225 --> 00:24:43.285
And how that can be personalized for,

541
00:24:43.585 --> 00:24:45.165
for a better in car experience.

542
00:24:45.265 --> 00:24:49.205
Do you prefer a certain, uh, you know, light, uh, uh,

543
00:24:49.315 --> 00:24:51.725
ambient lighting color in your vehicle, or,

544
00:24:52.145 --> 00:24:54.005
and they, it, those might be trivial,

545
00:24:54.025 --> 00:24:56.485
but if when you look at the whole gamut of possibilities,

546
00:24:56.905 --> 00:25:01.605
you actually can offer a much richer, personalized,

547
00:25:01.685 --> 00:25:03.045
incoming experience.

548
00:25:03.655 --> 00:25:05.005
Right. So

549
00:25:05.005 --> 00:25:07.925
before we wrap up, I, I know that you recently created, um,

550
00:25:08.125 --> 00:25:11.405
a detailed perspective on 12 key trends Mm-Hmm.

551
00:25:11.485 --> 00:25:13.765
And the broader mobility and transportation industry.

552
00:25:14.305 --> 00:25:15.685
Can you highlight just a few,

553
00:25:15.785 --> 00:25:16.965
and I think we may have touched on them

554
00:25:17.525 --> 00:25:19.405
in this conversation, but, um, wanted

555
00:25:19.405 --> 00:25:22.325
to have you highlight a, a couple of the most important ones

556
00:25:22.325 --> 00:25:24.565
that you felt were good to talk about. Yeah, yeah,

557
00:25:24.565 --> 00:25:25.565
Yeah. Yeah. So let me, lemme

558
00:25:25.565 --> 00:25:26.245
start with this.

559
00:25:26.245 --> 00:25:27.965
We talked about this user experience, right?

560
00:25:28.025 --> 00:25:30.645
So one of the things I, I talk about, I have 12 trends,

561
00:25:30.665 --> 00:25:31.965
by the way, in this entire report.

562
00:25:32.065 --> 00:25:33.885
So of those 12, one is

563
00:25:34.035 --> 00:25:36.685
what I call the incoming user experience, okay?

564
00:25:36.905 --> 00:25:38.245
How the cockpit is transforming,

565
00:25:38.245 --> 00:25:41.965
because in my opinion, today's cockpit essentially is not a

566
00:25:41.965 --> 00:25:43.965
whole lot different than what it was 30 years back.

567
00:25:44.235 --> 00:25:47.885
Okay? And over time, as new technology came, you know,

568
00:25:47.885 --> 00:25:49.125
they got thrown into the car,

569
00:25:49.425 --> 00:25:52.565
the car cockpit became a kitchen sink, okay, okay,

570
00:25:52.565 --> 00:25:55.685
we need another function added, we need another alert, edit,

571
00:25:55.795 --> 00:25:57.405
edit, edit, edit, edit, right?

572
00:25:57.825 --> 00:26:00.565
So it came to a point that it become overwhelming

573
00:26:00.585 --> 00:26:02.845
for the consumer, even though we have added a lot

574
00:26:02.845 --> 00:26:04.645
of new supporting technologies

575
00:26:04.745 --> 00:26:07.045
and new displays, touch controls and so on and so forth.

576
00:26:07.345 --> 00:26:10.365
But it still, still basically became too much

577
00:26:11.755 --> 00:26:13.165
cramped into one place, right?

578
00:26:13.505 --> 00:26:17.605
So one of the themes that how do change that user experience

579
00:26:17.705 --> 00:26:20.805
to something which is a lot more designed

580
00:26:20.805 --> 00:26:22.765
around the driver or the passenger.

581
00:26:22.875 --> 00:26:25.885
Okay? So this idea of less is more, okay.

582
00:26:26.425 --> 00:26:30.405
And how less is enough and how less is too less.

583
00:26:30.655 --> 00:26:31.965
Those are the things we are,

584
00:26:32.305 --> 00:26:35.245
we are seeing many different examples of people are trying.

585
00:26:35.665 --> 00:26:38.765
But that's one big, another big trend, you know, really,

586
00:26:38.765 --> 00:26:42.885
really developing the copy experience around the driver,

587
00:26:43.275 --> 00:26:46.165
what I call immersive UX user experience, right?

588
00:26:46.425 --> 00:26:48.005
We are beginning to see many examples,

589
00:26:48.005 --> 00:26:49.245
and that's a whole discussion

590
00:26:49.245 --> 00:26:51.485
that we can spend a whole hour talking about that.

591
00:26:51.545 --> 00:26:53.605
But that's kind of one trend I talk about.

592
00:26:54.225 --> 00:26:57.605
Um, the other is actually more like a much broader,

593
00:26:57.605 --> 00:26:59.005
which is a supply chain.

594
00:26:59.465 --> 00:27:01.645
So, you know, today the car industry is

595
00:27:01.645 --> 00:27:02.925
really a pyramid, okay.

596
00:27:02.925 --> 00:27:05.325
Where the car manufacturer sits at the top,

597
00:27:05.345 --> 00:27:08.445
and then we have the tiered structure, tier one supplier,

598
00:27:08.475 --> 00:27:11.285
tier two suppliers, et cetera, tiered three, et cetera.

599
00:27:11.285 --> 00:27:12.845
If you're a technology company,

600
00:27:13.065 --> 00:27:14.965
you might be a tiered three or tier four, right?

601
00:27:15.465 --> 00:27:19.925
But the, with, with entire technological changes happening,

602
00:27:20.145 --> 00:27:21.365
we are seeing, for example,

603
00:27:21.585 --> 00:27:24.725
the big technology companies like Qualcomm, like Nvidia,

604
00:27:24.725 --> 00:27:28.165
like Google, whoever, they're engaging more directly

605
00:27:28.165 --> 00:27:29.485
with the car industry, okay?

606
00:27:29.505 --> 00:27:30.805
In some cases, they're acting

607
00:27:30.905 --> 00:27:35.205
as big tier on suppliers at the same time, smaller players

608
00:27:35.345 --> 00:27:38.125
who may have a particular, you know, technology to offer,

609
00:27:38.355 --> 00:27:39.605
they're working directly

610
00:27:39.605 --> 00:27:41.045
with the car companies in many cases.

611
00:27:41.395 --> 00:27:44.445
Okay? So this whole supply chain structure is really

612
00:27:44.575 --> 00:27:46.805
undergoing a huge change, uh, change,

613
00:27:47.005 --> 00:27:49.285
I would say it's getting dismantled, of course, uh,

614
00:27:49.425 --> 00:27:51.045
almost in case of a pyramid.

615
00:27:51.275 --> 00:27:52.525
It's becoming more of a network.

616
00:27:53.225 --> 00:27:57.525
So, so those are two kind of one is a car centric change,

617
00:27:57.885 --> 00:27:59.925
ux, new immersive user experience.

618
00:27:59.945 --> 00:28:02.765
And then the other is this whole idea of a complete change

619
00:28:02.765 --> 00:28:05.325
of supply chain from a pyramid to a network.

620
00:28:07.055 --> 00:28:10.875
Well, I am, I am from a, you know, as a driver,

621
00:28:11.015 --> 00:28:14.515
the whole user experience of the driver, the, I I hope

622
00:28:14.515 --> 00:28:18.035
that more, more car companies do put more into that

623
00:28:18.035 --> 00:28:20.595
because, um, my current vehicle and,

624
00:28:20.595 --> 00:28:22.955
and some other vehicles have been in, I really wonder if,

625
00:28:23.055 --> 00:28:24.275
if there was anybody

626
00:28:24.275 --> 00:28:28.315
behind the user experience development of the, of the vehicle.

627
00:28:28.535 --> 00:28:31.275
So it's, uh, hopefully that, uh, you're right.

628
00:28:31.295 --> 00:28:34.875
And there will be a lot more, uh, in that, uh, research and,

629
00:28:34.895 --> 00:28:36.875
and investment in that area.

630
00:28:37.095 --> 00:28:40.155
So, um, well, very good, I hope.

631
00:28:40.335 --> 00:28:43.475
Um, so we like to, uh, wrap up all of our episodes

632
00:28:43.475 --> 00:28:45.515
with a lightning round, if you're up for that.

633
00:28:46.205 --> 00:28:48.375
Sure. On questions. Okay. Mm-Hmm.

634
00:28:48.755 --> 00:28:52.375
Um, so your favorite city or place to visit, or,

635
00:28:52.375 --> 00:28:56.055
or perhaps a favorite place for birdwatching in photography?

636
00:28:56.875 --> 00:29:00.255
Yes. This is, I I see everything through the eye of my,

637
00:29:00.315 --> 00:29:02.295
you know, my, my lens, right?

638
00:29:02.815 --> 00:29:04.455
I, I was recently in Costa Rica

639
00:29:04.455 --> 00:29:06.895
and I've been really blown, completely blown by that country

640
00:29:07.475 --> 00:29:09.375
and that biodiversity of that country.

641
00:29:09.485 --> 00:29:12.215
Okay. It's so much, so much. It's such a small place.

642
00:29:12.555 --> 00:29:16.295
So many different, you know, wildlife in, in my case birds.

643
00:29:16.675 --> 00:29:19.375
So suddenly this is my, probably the, my most,

644
00:29:19.635 --> 00:29:21.255
uh, favorite place right now.

645
00:29:21.395 --> 00:29:23.295
I'm planning to go back again, uh,

646
00:29:23.355 --> 00:29:25.375
and in, in fact, not just Costa Rica,

647
00:29:25.375 --> 00:29:26.775
but the countries around that Columbia

648
00:29:26.795 --> 00:29:27.975
is another target of mine.

649
00:29:28.755 --> 00:29:30.175
Um, so yeah,

650
00:29:30.175 --> 00:29:33.895
those are the two my most likely next visit place.

651
00:29:35.185 --> 00:29:36.465
Excellent. Well, if you go to Columbia,

652
00:29:36.565 --> 00:29:37.745
you have to have the ceviche.

653
00:29:38.055 --> 00:29:41.025
It's to die for. There really is. Okay. Okay.

654
00:29:42.305 --> 00:29:44.925
Um, well, what is your favorite bird and why?

655
00:29:46.305 --> 00:29:47.325
All birds are my favorite,

656
00:29:47.705 --> 00:29:50.165
but I have a particular soft corner for, you know,

657
00:29:50.165 --> 00:29:53.005
something I see in my backyard every day.

658
00:29:53.005 --> 00:29:54.325
It's the common cardinal.

659
00:29:54.665 --> 00:29:56.725
And the reason I have a particular soft corner

660
00:29:56.745 --> 00:29:59.685
for the bird is because I live in Michigan, and

661
00:29:59.885 --> 00:30:02.725
although Michigan is not that much of a severe winter state,

662
00:30:03.065 --> 00:30:04.925
but we have our gray dull

663
00:30:04.925 --> 00:30:07.565
and, you know, trees without leaves that kind of days

664
00:30:07.985 --> 00:30:09.165
for an extended period.

665
00:30:09.665 --> 00:30:10.845
And the only splash

666
00:30:10.865 --> 00:30:13.565
of color I see is from the cardinals, you know?

667
00:30:13.745 --> 00:30:16.725
So they provide that in extremely important touch

668
00:30:16.725 --> 00:30:19.165
of color in my gray winter days.

669
00:30:20.235 --> 00:30:21.285
Very nice. We,

670
00:30:21.345 --> 00:30:23.525
we don't get cardinals out here in California, really,

671
00:30:23.585 --> 00:30:25.845
or at least I've never really seen one, so yeah, you,

672
00:30:25.865 --> 00:30:27.605
you're very lucky to have those there.

673
00:30:28.525 --> 00:30:31.585
Um, have you ever driven electric or do you have an ev

674
00:30:33.165 --> 00:30:34.645
I currently do not have an ev

675
00:30:34.745 --> 00:30:36.205
but I have driven many of them.

676
00:30:37.025 --> 00:30:40.205
Uh, in fact, uh, GM's, uh, first electric car,

677
00:30:40.205 --> 00:30:41.765
which was a X Range extender.

678
00:30:41.865 --> 00:30:43.725
Uh, Chevy Volt is a car

679
00:30:43.725 --> 00:30:45.765
that I worked hands-on for a number of years.

680
00:30:46.285 --> 00:30:48.205
I was the technology planner for that product.

681
00:30:48.345 --> 00:30:51.325
So I have driven volt extensively, uh, you know,

682
00:30:51.385 --> 00:30:53.565
had it in my garage for an extended period of time.

683
00:30:54.135 --> 00:30:56.445
Chevy Bolt, which is a different,

684
00:30:56.445 --> 00:30:58.565
completely different car, also an electric car.

685
00:30:58.565 --> 00:31:00.805
Of course, I've driven and a whole bunch

686
00:31:00.805 --> 00:31:03.205
of other cars including, you know, Teslas

687
00:31:03.355 --> 00:31:05.805
because we always had that in our fleets.

688
00:31:05.985 --> 00:31:07.445
Mm-Hmm. And

689
00:31:07.445 --> 00:31:09.725
what about an autonomous vehicle? Have you ever ridden in one?

690
00:31:10.525 --> 00:31:12.605
I haven't. I don't think there is an autonomous car

691
00:31:12.925 --> 00:31:15.845
anywhere in the world today, so I haven't given that.

692
00:31:16.145 --> 00:31:18.405
But, but I have ridden, you know,

693
00:31:18.565 --> 00:31:23.485
I have taken rides in many autonomous, uh, uh, vehicles,

694
00:31:23.535 --> 00:31:28.085
pilot vehicles, uh, in particular at C Cs, we have,

695
00:31:28.235 --> 00:31:29.285
I've been like the Lyft

696
00:31:29.305 --> 00:31:31.765
and, uh, AP had a, had their joint project

697
00:31:31.815 --> 00:31:34.285
where you could actually take your, you know,

698
00:31:34.475 --> 00:31:35.925
call the car and then it comes.

699
00:31:36.025 --> 00:31:37.725
And, you know, of course it had a driver.

700
00:31:38.505 --> 00:31:42.205
And so we have taken rounds in that in, uh, RI centers last,

701
00:31:42.395 --> 00:31:46.365
last ces, Ella, um, a company from California,

702
00:31:46.475 --> 00:31:49.965
they had their test car, which was again, uh,

703
00:31:50.435 --> 00:31:51.765
partially autonomous.

704
00:31:52.225 --> 00:31:53.685
So yes, I have driven, and,

705
00:31:53.745 --> 00:31:56.005
and the shuttles, a lot of shuttles, you know,

706
00:31:56.005 --> 00:31:59.005
going back many years, seven, eight years, navias.

707
00:31:59.005 --> 00:32:02.005
And, you know, IBM had something called Ali, you know,

708
00:32:02.005 --> 00:32:03.525
those have all disappeared, by the way.

709
00:32:03.785 --> 00:32:06.405
Yes, I have taken rides in most of them, many of them.

710
00:32:07.035 --> 00:32:09.605
Well, I know San Francisco, you know, Ramo is,

711
00:32:09.665 --> 00:32:11.205
is there, I know Mark's written in them.

712
00:32:11.365 --> 00:32:13.365
I, I haven't yet. I just haven't had the opportunity.

713
00:32:13.505 --> 00:32:17.285
And I, I will say I'm still a little bit apprehensive to do

714
00:32:17.285 --> 00:32:20.125
so, but everyone that has done it has, I

715
00:32:20.125 --> 00:32:21.525
Know our next team building activity,

716
00:32:23.005 --> 00:32:24.125
I, I think you'll be fine.

717
00:32:24.585 --> 00:32:27.045
I'm, I'm, I'm hearing, you know, uh, more

718
00:32:27.045 --> 00:32:29.845
or less, you know, positive, uh, you know, uh,

719
00:32:29.845 --> 00:32:31.005
reports back from that.

720
00:32:31.515 --> 00:32:34.965
However, I would say that, you know, we are not ready

721
00:32:35.425 --> 00:32:36.605
for completely

722
00:32:36.605 --> 00:32:38.925
where we can give the controls completely back

723
00:32:39.005 --> 00:32:40.885
to the vehicle, you know, a hundred percent.

724
00:32:41.325 --> 00:32:43.485
I think we are still far from that particular goal.

725
00:32:44.235 --> 00:32:45.375
So, yeah, I would agree.

726
00:32:45.375 --> 00:32:48.335
So I have my ation, but again, I'll be very happy

727
00:32:48.335 --> 00:32:50.415
to ride one next time when I visit.

728
00:32:51.315 --> 00:32:53.695
And big, big picture question here,

729
00:32:53.695 --> 00:32:56.495
will we ever be fully electric Society?

730
00:32:58.975 --> 00:33:00.695
I don't think so. And here's the reason,

731
00:33:00.765 --> 00:33:04.175
because electric is one, one propulsion system

732
00:33:04.445 --> 00:33:08.695
that helps us get to the, get to a pollution free society.

733
00:33:09.235 --> 00:33:11.375
But that's suddenly not the only solution.

734
00:33:11.475 --> 00:33:15.135
So we'll probably see that hydrogen has a place, maybe not

735
00:33:15.135 --> 00:33:16.815
for your every everyday car,

736
00:33:16.995 --> 00:33:19.455
but for heavy duty trucks, okay.

737
00:33:19.705 --> 00:33:23.695
Which needs a large amount of stored energy,

738
00:33:24.475 --> 00:33:27.255
and they have their, their, you know,

739
00:33:27.255 --> 00:33:29.535
that their paths are relatively straightforward.

740
00:33:29.955 --> 00:33:31.415
So this whole charging issue that

741
00:33:31.415 --> 00:33:35.095
that is one bottleneck right now for wider adoption

742
00:33:35.355 --> 00:33:37.855
of electric cars doesn't necessarily apply

743
00:33:37.875 --> 00:33:39.535
to those type of vehicles.

744
00:33:40.075 --> 00:33:42.495
But, you know, we still are not there in terms

745
00:33:42.515 --> 00:33:45.335
of having hydrogen centric trucks,

746
00:33:45.715 --> 00:33:48.015
but I believe that we'll have a mix of the solution,

747
00:33:48.035 --> 00:33:49.815
but electric car would be a large part of that.

748
00:33:51.195 --> 00:33:52.975
Agreed. Well, thank you so much, Partha.

749
00:33:52.975 --> 00:33:54.295
This has been a wonderful conversation

750
00:33:54.915 --> 00:33:56.455
and thanks to all our listeners as well.

751
00:33:57.485 --> 00:33:59.435
Thank you so much. I really appreciate the time.

752
00:33:59.895 --> 00:34:01.195
Thanks. Bye-Bye. Thank you.

753
00:34:01.935 --> 00:34:03.755
Thanks for listening to The Mile Marker podcast.

754
00:34:04.215 --> 00:34:06.475
If you liked what you heard today, give us a, like,

755
00:34:06.565 --> 00:34:08.115
share this episode on social media

756
00:34:08.335 --> 00:34:10.995
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757
00:34:10.995 --> 00:34:13.155
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and ideas to keep the mobility industry moving forward.