| |JULY 20228he auto industry has come a long way from the days of Henry Ford. The fierce battle for innovation in engineering ruled back in the day. Then came the era of refinement of process, design and features both for safety and vanity. Cars were a commodity by then and the globalization of markets made the auto-makers turn their attention to innovation in branding, marketing and sales. All the while computers silently took over the asphalt riders. With the gradual increase of processing power and miniaturizing of hardware came an era of digitisation in every aspect of the business. Technological evolution and the constant striving for competitive advantage have been key factors in driving the adoption of the digital era. There is no escaping the fact that we are a part of the digital landscape and more than ever we are mining data. Data from the factory floor, from customer touchpoints, and from the vehicle itself. Bombarded/flooded/overwhelmed with millions of terabytes of data, we are left with the singular question, 'How do I unlock the value from this humongous and high-velocity stream of varied and volatile data?'To stay on top of the game, the automotive industry has to look to innovation of a different kind. Innovation in the Digital ecosystem. There is no denying the fact that the past few decades have witnessed manufacturing and supply chain management move onto a digital backbone. From SAP to ERP every manufacturing facility is assisted by the data platforms which orchestrate the movement of innumerable parts and components into a complex symphony of a finished product. But now we see a transition of a different kind, a transition to a data-intense ecosystem that demands weeding out the cacophony of noises to identify the crucial information that is hidden within. Not all digital data is equal. Take for instance the data being churned out by connected or autonomous vehicles. This data has very high volatility, being valid for not more than a few nanoseconds. The systems and platforms sifting through this data need to be agile and adaptive and leaning toward artificial intelligence. Whereas the telematics or vehicle health and performance data, though not as glamorous as the former, has a longer shelf life yielding itself to more intense analysis and scrutiny with an intent to improve engineering processes, vehicle performance or even component design. Understanding the veracity and creating platforms that can address these unique challenges to glean valuable insights is the key to current day digital innovation.Digital innovation in the customer touch points has always been top on the list because they have the potential to make or break a brand. But nature has thrown a 'spanner in the works' with a prolonged pandemic that demands a different kind of digital TINNOVATION IS DIGITALRudhra is a Digital Business Leader providing business & technology leadership to the India business of Altimetrik.By Rudhra Mohandoss, Client Partner ­ Business Development, AltimetrikRudhra Mohandoss,Client Partner ­ Business DevelopmentExpert Opinion
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