From sheets to bits, from pistons to silicon. Stellantis is now betting on software that has now become a strategic asset of all the major automotive groups after having ignored and snubbed it and now faces the epochal challenge of the digitized electric car. With three software (and hardware) platforms, the group led by Carlos Tavares responds to operations such as Renault’s Software Republique, Vw’s Cariad or the push on Daimler’s software that points to its own operating system (Mb.Os) to counteract even Google and its Android Automotive. And homemade software means maintaining your brand identity even in the era of smart cars.
The three platforms
The platforms announced by Stellantis are called Stla Brain, central digital vehicle control system, Stla Cockpit for user interface and infotainment e Stla Drive for automated driving. These architectures represent the digital equivalent of the four mechanical platforms (powertrain and chassis) Stla Small, Medium, Large and Frame for the future electric cars of the 14 brands of the group.
Let’s start with Brain which represents the car’s brain, the car’s central processing element: a single operating system and a central unit, which acts as a server. This reduces the number of control units and chips needed to perform a certain function.
Possible updates via Ota
Benefits? Fewer chips, more integration and manageable supply chain and ease of assembly. After all, in the era of the chip shortage, innovative strategies must be implemented (and in this area Tesla is a master). And here is another key point: the Over The Air (OtA) update like that of smartphones. This is an important feature because it allows, for example, to improve battery performance over time, to fix bugs or implement new software functions (perhaps with paid services).
Upgrading via Ota is no joke, Tesla it was a pioneer but the audience of the Californian house was made up mostly of a few tech fans and it is a very different thing to develop reliable online updates for millions of cars used even by those unfamiliar with technology. And then the car, despite the dominant storytelling, is not a smartphone, but a very complex super-technological object that moves and must do it safely.