When (and if) if the Afeela electric car from Sony Honda Mobility goes on sale, it will use the Snapdragon Digital Chassis from Qualcomm -- an automotive technology platform that combines safety and connectivity systems, entertainment, customization, and upgradability all into one product. For automakers, finding the right technology partner means simplifying a vehicle's architecture and unlocking new revenue streams in the form of passenger entertainment and downloadable upgrades. The Qualcomm Snapdragon Digital Chassis is comprised of four automotive systems -- Snapdragon Auto Connectivity includes connected systems like 5G and vehicle-to-vehicle technologies, Snapdragon Cockpit Platform supplies the digital instrument clusters and infotainment controls, Snapdragon Car-to-Cloud makes over-the-air software updates possible, and the Snapdragon Ride Platform supplies driver assistance technologies and autonomous driving capability. "There is a tremendous amount of opportunity to reinvent the car," Nakul Duggal, Qualcomm's senior vice president and general manager for automotive, tells Wired. "And a tremendous amount of that reinvention is happening because the car is becoming a truly digital product."

CES has become the premier event to showcase new automotive technology. In fact, even before the COVID-19 Omicron variant outbreak, it seemed that the automotive segment was drawing the lion's share of in-person attendance at CES. And throughout CES, I will be highlighting some of the technology advancements aimed at Electric Vehicles (EVs), Advanced Driver-Assistance Systems (ADAS), and Autonomous Vehicles (AV's). Qualcomm announced major enhancements to its product portfolio for ADAS and Autonomous Drive (AD) systems. While the company did not go into detail during its press conference, Qualcomm provided more depth on the announcement during a recent briefing.

The semiconductor industry has been investing heavily in the automotive segment for the past several years and rightfully so. According to Intel's forecast presented at IAA Mobility, the value of the automotive bill of materials (BOM) will increase as a percentage of the car from 4% today to more than 20% in 2030. There are few individual segments growing at such a rapid rate. We tend to think about this growth because of the electrification and autonomous control of vehicles, but as Qualcomm's CEO Cristiano Amon pointed out in his keynote at IAA Mobility, it is due to much more. According to Mr. Amon, the entire world is going through a "digital transformation".