We're in 2020, and there are no flying cars in sight.
Still, some amazing changes are coming our way. Cars are safer than ever, and they offer new options such as in-car entertainment, electric power, and AI - so they can drive themselves!
What else is in store for drivers of the future? We asked a panel of experts for their opinion. Buckle your seatbelt, and get ready for the future!
**Would you like to participate in this roundup? Send me an email: gregory (at) yourparkingspace.co.uk
#1 Personalised services will be the future
Personalised services are the biggest trend that will impact how private vehicles will evolve in the future. Recent research by Parkopedia shows that (51%) would like their in-car navigation system to make personalised parking recommendations based on their destination. Car manufacturers are already building out the portfolio of services available to drivers via the in-car head unit, and this will become voice-activated, as opposed to touch-screen, potentially utilising the same voice assistants that many of us already have at home.
For example, if you need to find parking, you can already instruct your car to recommend parking near to your final destination that is likely to be available at your expected time of arrival, make a reservation, and then enter the parking facility and exit without ever visiting the payment meter. Automatic payments are also now available for certain street locations. For both on-street and off-street parking payments, as the driver, you are charged via an account set up with the car manufacturer at the time of purchase.
Environments such as retirement villages and car parks have seen the most success in autonomous (self-driving) cars to date. But before we see a widespread adoption of driverless cars on the roads, we will see automated valet parking in locations such as parking garages, likely within the next 3 years. Parkopedia’s research shows that as of today, a quarter of drivers would be prepared to pay extra for their car to be able to park autonomously, allowing the driver to exit the vehicle at their final destination or car park entrance.
That’s one reason cars will be more transparent. There will be a multitude of voice and sound sensors as well for similar purposes. The interior will be an entertainment center, sort of like a mini-cinema or VR world.
-Emrah Gultekin, CEO of visual AI company Chooch
#3 Cars will be cleaner and more efficient
Cars of the future will not only be much more efficient, but also likely safer, and more automated. I expect their efficiency to continue to rise as it has historically. The majority are likely to run cleaner as well. It’s difficult to say whether they will be electrified, run on a cleaner alternative/renewable fuel source (i.e. not fossil fuels), or a combination of both. I suspect both.
I also expect the amount of tech/AI to gradually find its way further into cars to the point where cars will be able to communicate with each other on the road, thus (hopefully) preventing accidents.
-Laura Gonzalez, Marketing Manager of AutoNation
#4 The car of the future... won't be a car
In the future, we’ll use different vehicles for different purposes. Most of our trips are just a few miles so the best car for most of them will be a bicycle - or more precisely, an e-bike.
Over that distance, an e-bike is no slower than a car, and may actually be faster. They require less room to park, are cheap to run, and are healthier for the environment as well as our own bodies. They offer a sweat-free experience, make going up hills easy, and have lights that are suitable for any time of the day or night.
-Adrian Try, writer and editor, SoftwareHow
#5 The car of the future will be electric
-Richard Reina, Product Training Director at CARiD.com
#6 Drink and drug testing will be the norm
#7 You'll feel textures and haptic effects
-Greg Topel, head of business development at Tanvas
#8 Driving will be easier
-Sergey Yudovskiy, CEO of Electroneek
#9 The Car of the Future Will Be a Dynamic Interconnected Machine
Emerging technology will define the car of the future in many ways. For one, they'll rely on cleaner energy sources such as electricity or solar energy. They'll also have more impact on our personal lives through IoT networks. This means our cars will be equipped with even more sensors which can detect our mood and inebriation level.
With this information, they will be able to make important decisions such as driving autonomously or locking up, as well as, simple decisions such as changing the music to fit our mood. Lastly, they'll be fully autonomous. Wanna pick the kids? Send your car to do that. Interested in some groceries or fast food? Send your car to pick up the order and bring it home.
That's the future for me. A Dynamic IoT vehicle with the prime duty of providing a means of transportation.
-Aris Tchoukoualeu, CoFounder of tutorial45.com
#10 Cars will become smarter
Cars of the future will be more automated in terms of tech, in order to fulfill the demands and needs from both drivers and vehicle authorities and governments. For the driver this will mean personalized options and services such as auto-parking, -driving, -navigation and voice based services. For authorities, I think in terms of safety, by e.g. super smart sensors which can foresee danger and anticipate to it. Also, I expect Artificial Intelligence to play part in cars of the future.
By implementing big data and machine learning into the innovative process of car design, cars will become smarter and be able to foresee situations such as traffic jams.
Also, durability will find its way further into cars. Who knows what other possibilities 'electric' has in the future. Lower costs due to a reduction in fuel needs and lower emissions already are implemented in daily life by full electric cars, but what if the costs of electricity can be reduced as well? That's the question that will be answered within a couple of years.
-Lucas Vlaarding, CarTech Editor at Dutch-Tech Magazine
#11 Shared cars will be the future
-Tom Giethoorn, Snappcar
#12 Voice command cars
Abubakar Mubarak, Founder and CEO of MouthyTech
#13 Edge computing will be key
Car manufacturers know that the competition in the building of the car of the future is and will continue to be at a feverish pace. In order to continue to keep up with the constant disruptions in design and the market in general will need to continue to embrace the digitization of the vehicle experience.
In order for all manufacturers to eventually put out self-driving cars to cars equipped with Wi-Fi and augmented reality, these “cars of the future” require instantaneous data transmission to ensure they run safely and efficiently—something that centralized data centers are too far away to provide. Enter, edge computing, which positions these data centers as close as possible to users, drastically reducing latency—and transmitting data significantly faster than a larger, centralized data center.
This is especially crucial with digitized cars, where a delay of microseconds can make the difference between a smooth ride and a fatal crash.
In the recently released State of the Edge Report for 2020, Packet and leading edge colocation provider Vapor IO have discovered the global Infrastructure Edge IT power footprint for the automotive industry is forecast to increase from 87MW to 3405 MW between 2019 and 2028.
#14 The future will be electric!
Fully electric vehicles are surging in popularity and most insiders expect this trend to continue well into the foreseeable future. Companies like Tesla are breaking barriers that were previously seen as big hurdles for full electric vehicles. Mileage and horsepower have become less of a limitation and the availability of public charging stations is beginning to grow around the country.
Modern drivers are always looking for ways to lower their fuel costs and emissions and now that electric cars have become truly competitive with hybrid or gas-powered vehicles, more and more drivers will opt to go electric each year.
-Jake McKenzie, Content Manager for Auto Accessories Garage