The agreements expand Amazon's efforts to get a bigger
foothold in the transportation industry, and could help Stellantis close the
gap with Tesla in developing vehicles with sophisticated, software-powered
infotainment features that are connected to the data processing cloud.
Stellantis shares were up more than 3 percent in Milan.
The agreements between Stellantis and Amazon, the online
retailer and cloud computing power, announced in conjunction with the CES
technology conference, are wide ranging, involving software and hardware.
Amazon and Stellantis said they will work together to
develop software for the "digital cockpit" infotainment systems of
Stellantis vehicles that will start launching in 2024. Stellantis said it will
use Amazon's Alexa technology for voice controlled features, "navigation,
vehicle maintenance, ecommerce marketplaces, and payment services."
Big ecommerce delivery fleet operators such as Amazon will
be key to determining winners and losers as established automakers compete with
startups to electrify the world's package delivery system.
Stellantis Chief Software Officer Yves Bonnefont said during
a conference call Wednesday that the automaker's use of Alphabet Inc's Android
software for vehicles will "evolve over time."
Amazon will also help Stellantis speed up development of new
digital products and "upskill Stellantis' global workforce."
Stellantis and other established automakers are scrambling to match Tesla's
ability to rapidly deploy new vehicle features and revenue-generating
subscription services using software delivered over the air.
As part of the partnership, Stellantis will use Amazon as its
"preferred cloud provider" to provide the mobile network and
computing power future vehicles will need.
Under what Stellantis said is a separate agreement, Amazon
will be the first customer for Stellantis' new line of electric delivery vans
due to launch in 2023. The companies said they plan to put thousands of
Stellantis Ram ProMaster electric vans on the road every year.
Amazon has a previous agreement to buy up to 100,000
electric vans from startup Rivian Automotive.
Stellantis in May had agreed with iPhone assembler Foxconn
to create a joint venture to supply in-car and connected-car technologies
across the auto industry. © Reuters
0 comments:
Post a Comment