The next big thing in connectivity is in vehicle communications, as indicated by a recent McKinsey study showing vehicle-to-everything – V2X – as one of the biggest slices of investments of automotive technologies. 

Almost 18 billion dollars were spent on V2X

It’s the third largest amount after electrification and autonomous technologies. McKinsey doesn’t detail what counts as V2X connectivity, but it certainly includes low latency direct V2X connections for safety and long-range 4G/5G connectivity as well. You can find the full McKinsey study here.

One thing is for sure: this money was well spent. Automation, the largest driver of investments can only do so much without short-range V2X connectivity. If we want to see fully self-driving cars sharing the roads with conventional, human-driven cars, communication between vehicles is essential. It needs an ultra low latency connection, so vehicles can share information with their surroundings without having to rely on a cellular network.

Then there is the question of peer-to-peer communication. The need to integrate human gestures so that human drivers will understand the intentions of autonomous vehicles. Most of this is traffic safety and efficiency, for both human and algorithmic drivers.

V2X also helps us recognize and react to dangerous situations sooner. A broken-down car on the side of the road tells the system to turn on the fog lights and activate the emergency brakes to avoid a collision. Connecting with the roadside infrastructure allows vehicles to collect data from smart sensors and cameras. This gives drivers access to information from directions that the car’s sensors cannot see.

We can make life-saving decisions about invisible events

The amount of investment spent on V2X may be amazing, but it can also be said about the future it will realize.

We’d love to talk with you about how V2X can change the city you live in. Contact us to discuss the possibilities