Volkswagen relies on Qualcomm chips for ‘autonomous driving’

VW software subsidiary Cariad and chip giant Qualcomm have announced their collaboration: Volkswagen will in the future use Qualcomm system-on-chips for the new software platform, which enables assisted and automated driving functions up to level 4. This is according to a statement from the group.

Accordingly, Cariad will acquire the “Snapdragon Ride” platform processors from US semiconductor manufacturer Qualcomm to further develop VW’s autonomous driving software. Qualcomm will provide system-on-chips (SoCs) for the Cariad platform, which aims to enable automated driving up to the Level 4 standard, where the car can handle all aspects of driving without human intervention.

“We will purchase system-on-chips (SoCs) from Qualcomm, a chip design expert with more than 140,000 patents, that enable assisted and automated driving up to level 4,” Volkswagen CEO Herbert Diess wrote on LinkedIn. “The chips from Qualcomm’s Snapdragon Ride portfolio will be used in all Group vehicles with the unified Cariad software generation from the middle of the decade,” continues Diess.

MobileEye from Intel

Volkswagen, Europe’s largest automaker, will also expand its existing partnership with Intel’s MobileEye and is already in talks, the group boss confirmed. Diess, who took over responsibility for Cariad on the automaker’s board after a dispute with employee representatives, called it “the most ambitious project in our entire industry to develop key sources of profit for the future”. Regarding the reports of delays to Cariad (we reported), Diess said it would take two life cycles to realize the project: “That’s why I would like to say to the critics within the group: it is better to work together on progress than just complain to everyone else.”