Stellantis to boost electrification with new software strategy

Stellantis has mapped out its software strategy to deploy next-generation tech platforms, as the brand targets €20 billion in revenues by 2030.

The manufacturer says its new strategy will build on existing connected vehicle capabilities to transform how customers interact with their vehicles and will move its vehicles from today’s dedicated electronic architectures to an open software-defined platform that “seamlessly integrates with customers’ digital lives.” Through regular over-the-air updates, Stellantis adds that its new strategy will keep customers cars “fresh, exciting and updated years after they have been built.”

Carlos Tavares, Stellantis CEO, said: “Our electrification and software strategies will support the shift to become a sustainable mobility tech company to lead the pack, leveraging the associated business growth with over-the-air features and services, and delivering the best experience to our customers.

“With the three all-new AI-powered technology platforms to arrive in 2024, deployed across the four STLA vehicle platforms, we will leverage the speed and agility associated with the de-coupling of hardware and software cycles.”

Stellantis plans to invest more than €30 billion through 2025 to execute its software and electrification transformation.

The Stellantis software strategy works hand-in-hand with the Company’s vehicle electrification plans, detailed at EV Day in July 2021, which targets that more than 70% of its vehicle sales in Europe and more than 40% of vehicle sales in the United States will be low emission vehicles (LEV) by 2030.

Stellantis is expected to produce 34 million monetizable connected cars by 2030, with a majority of all new vehicles to be fully over-the-air updatable by 2024.

As well as this, the manufacturer is launching three all-new AI-powered technology platforms to be deployed at scale, starting in 2024. The three new platforms will be deployed, at scale, across the four vehicle platforms of Stellantis over the following two years.

The heart of the transformation to customer-centric services is the new electrical/electronic (E/E) and software architecture, STLA Brain.

STLA Brain is fully over-the-air capable, with 30 modules addressed, compared to just ten today. It is a service-oriented architecture fully integrated with the cloud that connects electronic control units within the vehicle with the vehicle’s central high performing computer (HPC) via a high-speed data bus.

STLA SmartCockpit, built on top of STLA Brain, will integrate with the digital lives of vehicle occupants to create a customizable third living space. According to Sellantis, studies have shown that customers spend an average of four years of their lives in their vehicles and this is only increasing. STLA SmartCockpit, powered by the Mobile Drive joint venture between Stellantis and Foxconn, delivers AI-based applications such as navigation, voice assistance, e-commerce marketplace and payment services. STLA AutoDrive, developed in partnership with BMW, will offer Level 2, Level 2+ and Level 3 autonomous driving capabilities and will be continuously upgraded through OTA updates.

To support this transformation, Stellantis is creating a software and data academy to retrain more than 1,000 internal engineers in multiple roles and develop its software community.

The company is also hiring top software and AI talent from technology and other industries globally.By 2024, Stellantis targets having 4,500 efficiency-driven software engineers, creating talent hubs around the globe.