The Future Of Mobility Is At Our Doorstep
By Timo Möller, Asutosh Padhi, Dickon Pinner, and Andreas Tschiesner
What mattered in the automotive and mobility markets in 2019, and what will dominate the space in 2020?
We look closer at the autonomous, connected, electrified, and shared trends that matter.
The past year was a pivotal one, with many important achievements across the disruptive dimensions of mobility: autonomous driving, connectivity, electrification, and shared mobility (ACES). In 2019, electric-vehicle (EV) sales set another sales record globally, and EVs became much more prominent in the public awareness in major automotive markets, such as Europe. Many more cities have announced and already partially implemented further regulation of private-car-based mobility. Some players demonstrated truly driverless cars without backup drivers, setting new milestones in autonomous driving. Uber and Lyft—the two big disruptors in the ride-hailing space—went public in spring 2019. Also in 2019, regulators began granting approval to drone deliveries and to electric vertical takeoff and landing crafts, with these types of vehicles flying for the first time.
However, 2019 was also a year of reality checks, as congestion and public-transportation woes reached new heights for cities around the world, realization timelines for technology like autonomous vehicles (AVs) were postponed, and some new mobility business models failed to win over investors. Economically, global automakers had a tougher time in 2018 and 2019, with several headwinds: higher expenses required to meet stricter emission regulations, global trade tensions, and slowing sales in key end markets. These triggered profit warnings at several large OEMs and suppliers.
Given that key risks for the industry remain elevated and that competition from new mobility attackers is intensifying, the road ahead remains bumpy, as today’s reality delivers a mixed picture for the future of mobility. On the one hand, there are big expectations with regard to future technologies and business models; on the other hand, there is an urgent need for a “double transformation.” In other words, preparing companies for the mobility of tomorrow also means making today’s business crisis resistant.
