CHAPTER FOUR

Racing ahead with

autonomous cars and

digital innovation

Contributed by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC)

“Over the next five years, the connected

car could disrupt the entire automotive

ecosystem. Connected cars are the leading

edge of disruptive technology that’s

changing not only the automobile, but the

nature of the automotive industry.”

Carlo Gagliardi,

Partner and Co-Lead of the Digital Practise, PwC

The automotive industry will undergo fundamental change as

semi-autonomous driving emerges, followed by an eventual

shift to full autonomous driving. Auto makers will take on a

new identity as providers of mobility services. This will open

the door to lucrative new digital revenue streams, especially

as they begin to explore opportunities in other digital areas

such as entertainment, commerce and monitoring a driver’s

health and fatigue level.

We foresee annual sales of connected car technologies

tripling to €122.6 billion by 2021. This is a slight slowdown in

adoption speed compared to earlier estimates, attributable

to the decision by European regulators to give OEMs an

extension to 2018 to install automatic emergency calling

systems.