Microsoft And Bosch To Partner On New Cloud-Based Software Platform For Cars

Microsoft and automotive supplier Bosch are teaming up to develop a new vehicle software platform.

The software platform will be based on Microsoft Azure, the company’s cloud computing service and is being designed to make the installation of over-the-air updates for vehicles just as easy as it is for phones. This platform will also provide motorists with access to new functions and digital services over the lifetime of their vehicles.

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Bosch will provide a host of software modules in the partnership. In addition, the company will contribute its expertise, electrical and electronic architectures, control units, and vehicle computers, plus the basic software and middleware for vehicle computers and control units. CNET notes that the companies will also create new tools to make it easier to develop software moving forward.

“Bosch already securely updates car software over the air today,” member of the board of management of Robert Bosch GmbH Dr. Markus Heyn said. “Having a comprehensive software platform from the vehicle to the cloud will reduce the complexity of the software development and the vehicle system integration. In this way we will create the conditions for wireless updates to work just as smoothly and conveniently in vehicles as they do in smartphones.”

“Our collaboration with Bosch brings together the expertise of one of the world’s leading automotive suppliers with the power of the Microsoft cloud, AI and GitHub,” added executive vice president of Cloud + AI at Microsoft, Scott Guthrie. “With software quickly becoming a key differentiator in the automotive industry, our ambition is to help businesses accelerate the delivery of unique mobility services across passenger cars and commercial fleets at scale.”