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company, to a train company, to an aircraft company, and it will all be about
mobility, intermodality, connectivity, and the management of shared data.
It’s extremely difficult to assess in detail at this early stage, but we already know
that the companies that will survive are those that are linked to ecosystems. So far,
the main actors have been in the auto industry. But now they’re becoming the minor-
ity. Every year, Michelin conducts a major global mobility summit called Movin’On,
and each year we have more people from other industries attending: insurance com-
panies, banks, post offices, railroads, airlines. People are trying to understand the
future, how to connect to it, how to form partnerships, and how to cooperate.
S+B: The major automakers are accustomed to being at the top of the mobility
food chain.
SENARD: But that probably won’t be the case in the future. Auto makers can’t
spend the money it would require to lead the pack in every aspect of mobility. It
would be too expensive, and impossible to predict success. My duty at the alli-
ance will be to make sure the companies work together, and that we make the
right decisions about where we belong.
S+B: So if the alliance ends up, say, playing a more focused role than it does
today — perhaps a larger role in electric vehicles but a smaller one in other
vehicles and maybe supplying powertrains for a new public transit system...
SENARD: If we can find the right place in the larger business ecosystem, then we
have a chance for success. +