BMW Group Technology Office USA Celebrates 25 Years in Silicon
Valley with the North American Debut of the BMW
Vision Neue Klasse.
- Advanced R&D facility is one of six BMW Group offices located
in key technology hotspots around the world focused on emerging
technologies, user-centered thinking, and product design to envision
the future of BMW Group products.
- BMW Group Member of the Board of Management, Development, Frank
Weber to headline a panel discussion entitled “Humanizing Tech,”
moderated by David Pogue.
- BMW Group Technology Office USA opens its doors to media,
stakeholders, industry leaders, and partners for a series of
immersive workshops, exclusive product previews, and mixed reality,
multi-sensory interactive driving experiences.
Mountain View, California – December 2023 The BMW
Group Technology Office USA is celebrating 25 years in Silicon Valley
with an event featuring immersive workshops, exclusive technology
demonstrations, and exciting mixed reality, multi-sensory driving
experiences at Levi's Stadium. The celebration will be highlighted by
the North American debut of the BMW Vision Neue Klasse and a panel
discussion entitled “Humanizing Technology,” with insights from BMW
Group Member of the Board of Management, Development, Frank Weber.
Weber will be joined by Futurist, Neuroscientist & Technologist
Poppy Crum, Head of Trust & Safety at Airbnb Naba Banerjee, and
Head of Product at Meta for Work Micah Collins. The conversation will
be moderated by renowned technology expert, David Pogue.
“Cutting-edge technological ideas with a lot of potential,
developed in the world’s beating heart of high-tech, and perfected in
our worldwide innovation network. This is how our BMW Tech Office in
Mountain View works,” said Weber. “I am very excited to see what
visionary impulses for our ground-breaking innovations our team will
keep on creating in the future.”
As an advanced R&D facility, BMW Group Technology Office USA
is focused on emerging technologies, user-centered thinking, and
product design to envision the future of BMW Group products. A team
of creative thinkers, visionaries, and engineers are charged with
exploring what’s possible, and pushing the envelope to create the
best, and most innovative experiences for BMW Group customers. For the
first time the BMW Group Technology Office USA opens its doors to
media, stakeholders and partners for an inside look and showcase of
some of their past, present, and future projects.
„Innovation is in the core of the BMW brand. Our global
Technologies Offices Network connects us with the TOP tech regions
worldwide. 25 years ago the BMW Technology Office USA has initiated
this successful collaboration model. Our team in California has
established a large number of fruitful collaborations and many
meaningful innovations for our products and services. When I think of
the multitude of projects that are currently in the pipeline there are
a lot more awesome things to come.” says Rudolf Bencker Senior VP BMW
Group Inventions and Innovations Management.
Global Network.
BMW Group Technology USA
became the first BMW Group technology research and development office
located outside of Munich when it first opened in Silicon Valley in
1998. Originally based in Palo Alto, the office moved to its current
location in Mountain View in 2011.
Today, BMW Group Technology
Office USA it is part of a global network of BMW Group technology
offices, which are strategically based in key technology hotspots
around the world and a critical aspect of the company’s open
innovation approach. In addition to Silicon Valley, and Munich,
locations include Seoul, Shanghai, Tel Aviv, and Tokyo.
The goal and collective mission of this expansive network is to
collect local insight, identify emerging technologies, and work with
key partners to envision the future of BMW Group products and customer experiences.
The North American Premiere of the BMW Vision Neue Klasse.
First shown at the International Auto Show (IAA) in
Munich in September, the BMW Vision Neue Klasse will make its North
American debut. Built on the three pillars of electrification,
digitalization, and circularity, the Vision Neue Klasse represents a
“New Class” of BMW vehicles which will begin arriving in 2025.
Immersive Workshops – what will be presented:
In
a series of workshops, participants will get a behind-the-scenes look
at some of the past and present projects developed at the facility, including:
- The AR/VR Journey and its Evolution: Explorations in augmented
reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR), and potential future
applications - including hands-on demonstrations of early product prototypes.
- Intelligent Personal Assistant (IPA): A preview of BMW Group’s
next generation in-vehicle voice assistant technology.
- Innovation Mindset: Insight from the office’s team of explorers,
creators, and builders, and how being located in the U.S. and
Silicon Valley impacts their work, featuring a rare look at some
previously unreleased projects.
- Electric Vehicle Battery Development: A discussion on future
electric vehicle battery technology with BMW Group’s independent
venture capital firm, BMW i Ventures, focused on their strategic
investments in this space and collaboration with BMW Group
Technology Office USA.
In addition: Interactive Driving Experiences.
A
series of interactive driving experiences at Levi’s stadium - from a
mixed-reality driving experience and a multi-sensory dynamic scent
journey, to a first-ever in-car demonstration of Meta’s Quest headset.
- Mixed Reality Driving Experience: A demonstration of how BMW can
use mixed reality technology to bring real cars onto virtual
racetracks. In this interactive experience, participants will get
behind the wheel of a BMW M4 and drive on a closed course while
wearing a VR headset to experience the merging of the virtual and
physical worlds.
- Innovation Mindset – Intelligent Dynamic Scent Journey: Attendees
will go on a dynamic scent journey during this demonstration of
project developed at BMW Group Technology Office USA, that went
unreleased so far. Passengers will enjoy a multisensory experience
that is shaped by the context of the drive and the world around them.
- Mixed Reality Meta Quest Driving Experience: BMW Group and Meta
are pioneering research and exploring potential use cases for
extended reality devices within the digital vehicle ecosystem. This
is a first-time, in-vehicle demonstration of the ability to
accurately display stable virtual reality (VR) and mixed reality
(MR) content to passengers in a fast-moving car, even when making
turns, going over speed bumps, and accelerating. By integrating Meta
Quest’s tracking system with BMW’s sensor data, the researchers
enabled a series of stable “car-locked” gaming, entertainment,
productivity, and meditation experiences.
- Digital Key Demonstration: This session will discuss BMW’s
critical role in developing an early proof of concept for using
smartphones as a digital vehicle key, which has enabled an industry
standard and opened the door for additional vehicle-related
smartphone functionality.
In the event of enquiries please contact:
BMW Group Corporate Communications
Christophe Koenig
Head of BMW Group IT, Digital
and Driving Experience Communications
Mobile:
+49-176-601-56097
E-Mail: Chrsitophe.Koenig@bmw.de
Bernhard Ederer
Communication BMW Group Innovation,
Powertrain Technologies
Mobile: +49-176-601-28556
E-Mail: Bernhard.Ederer@bmwgroup.com
Almut Stollberg
Head of Communication BMW Group
Innovation, Design, Technology, Digital Car
Mobile:
+49-151-601-96543
E-Mail: Almut.Stollberg@bmw.com
Internet: www.press.bmwgroup.com/deutschland
E-Mail:
presse@bmw.de