The Virtual Car

The man who said ‘no’ to the money, Ford CEO Alan Mulally may not need the government, but he does need technology partners. Alan spoke yesterday at The Consumer Electronics Show, stating his desire to create an ‘open platform‘ at Ford with technology partners.

The early signs are encouraging. Ford showcased its connectivity technologies through its ‘Sync’ platform in collaboration with Microsoft and other key partners. (Alan was joined on stage by Steve Balmer).

Sync aims to make your car’s dashboard both a portal and a laptop, with data over voice, text messaging and internet connecting the home or office to the car. Features include: real time personalized traffic reports with optimal route directions, vehicle health report, up to the minute Doppler weather reports, GPS maps and directions that sync to your personal devices and 911 assistance, all by voice command.
Ford also offers parents a  safe driving ignition key to limit speed of the vehicle and volume on the radio, which was met by wide applause by many of the parents in the room. Ford “Work Solutions” offers the first mobile-office technology platform for the Ford F-150. Contractors and others who work out of their truck now have 3G, PC, printer and bluetooth connections and receivers embedded in their vehicles.
Detroit has been thinking for since the days of Henry Ford and Alfred Sloan about how to maximize the profits from each input rather than the profit of the final output. Silicon Valley culture of open innovation and rapid iterations used the network effects of that mindset to maximize the value of it’s output, sharing profit on inputs along the way. However, this culture of openness is spreading beyond the valley. P&G found great ideas like Swiffer and Crest Spin Brush by opening their R&D through its ‘connect and develop‘ model. Now Ford even has Best Buy and its Geek Squad lined up to bring new meaning to  ‘roadside assistance’.

What was most encouraging about this keynote from Alan was that Detroit (or at least Ford) seemed to be thinking more like Silicon Valley. In particular, the openness with technology partners perhaps signals a new path to innovation in which user defined technology connects to better designed cars and ultimately a return to profitability.�

Tagged as: CES, detroit, Ford, mulally, open, sillicon valley, sync