The Automotive Outlook 2026 webinar revealed some challenges for the industry.
When the history of engineering is finally written, scholars will talk about the various ages of technology, and up until now, they’ve largely concentrated on motive power. The “Age of Coal”, the “Age of Steam”, the “Age of Petroleum”, and the “Age of Electricity” are already part of the lexicon, but it’s second decade of the 21st century, and a strong argument can be made for the “Age of Software”.
Particularly the development of the software defined machine, and nowhere is this more prevalent than in the automotive industry. Starting from simple control of electronic fuel injection through firmware maps, modern vehicles now contain hundreds of millions of lines of code, and coders now outnumber mechanical engineers in most automaker R&D departments. Vehicles are more capable, and are much more sophisticated, but the price of this advancement is complexity. Are modern cars and light trucks too complex? Jim Anderton has definite opinions.
You can watch Jim’s full Automotive 2026 Industry Outlook & Beyond webinar.
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