Areas of Opportunity to Harness Vehicle Data and Analytic Insights
By: Kamyar Moinzadeh, President and CEO of Airbiquity
As more of our everyday devices become part of the Internet of Things (IoT), data is becoming more valuable than ever. A significant addition to data generating devices will be connected vehicles, which are expected to annually generate 11.1 million gigabytes of data and $14.5 billion of revenue post-vehicle sale by 2020 when the connected vehicle population is predicted to reach 152 million units globally.
While the majority of connected vehicle data to date has been centered around vehicle status - such as speed, location, braking, or diagnostics - the continued evolution of connected vehicles and the data they generate will provide automakers and their ecosystem partners with powerful information and insights about multiple aspects of the vehicle, drivers, passengers, and the surrounding environment. There are three important areas of opportunity to consider:
Traffic & Road Condition Alerts
Drivers and automakers will benefit greatly from data on multiple dimensions. With an increasing number of connected vehicles on the roads interacting with each other and city infrastructure, crashes are expected to decline up to 80% by exchanging real-time information and taking proactive measures. Additionally, these insights will be increasingly integrated into smart traffic management systems and signals to improve travel times, ease gridlock, reduce rubber banding, and provide alternate routes. When it comes to weather conditions, connectivity will provide proactive warnings about potential road hazards like flooded streets or patches of ice to prevent accidents and improve navigation.
Cybersecurity & Data Monetization
Connected vehicles will continually collect and transmit data on driving patterns with every turn of the wheel, increasingly providing automakers with real-time insights that weren't previously available. Automakers will be able to identify and analyze car maintenance issues for proactive service, deliver improved features and services post-vehicle purchase through software updates, and provide real-time security monitoring and intrusion detection protection against cybersecurity threats and attacks. But it's not just automakers who will be able to cash in on these insights - automotive suppliers, insurance companies, infrastructure operators, commercial retailers, and local government organizations will have the opportunity to join the automotive data-fueled gold rush by selling products or services tailored to specific customers wants and needs, displaying targeted advertising, and analyzing the data to optimize business processes, along with a myriad of other undefined use cases.
Multi-App Synchronization User Experiences
In our increasingly connected society, consumers want to control everything in their lives quickly and efficiently with the touch of a button or a few key strokes. This same experience will be available from the driver's seat where consumers spend a good deal of their daily time. Connected vehicles will become a more integrated part of driver and passenger digital lifestyles by seamlessly incorporating personal data, preferences, use patterns, calendars, alarms, parking, navigation and other pertinent information to improve consumer convenience and user experiences.
As the connected vehicle industry continues to grow and more features are integrated into the ownership and driving experience, we can expect data and related analytic insights to take a front seat and increasingly provide automakers and their ecosystem partners with unlimited business opportunities and contributors to customer satisfaction and brand loyalty.