BlackBerry signs deal for in-car software with Jaguar Land Rover
TORONTO BlackBerry Ltd. will develop software for Jaguar Land Rover’s “next-generation” vehicles as part of a multi-year partnership with the British carmaker owned by India’s Tata Motors Ltd.
The companies jointly announced Thursday that BlackBerry will license its QNX and Certicom technology to Jaguar Land Rover and assign a team of engineers to develop new electronic control units. The first project will be a next-generation infotainment system.
Terms of the agreement are confidential, so it’s not clear how much the agreement is worth, how long the partnership will last or how many BlackBerry engineers are dedicated to the project.
But the deal appears similar to an agreement BlackBerry signed with Ford Motor Co. in October 2016 to use QNX software in Ford vehicles. That deal marked the first time BlackBerry cut out tier one suppliers to work directly with a car company.
The announcement confirms reports from November 2017 that BlackBerry was in talks with Jaguar Land Rover.
At the time, the Wall Street Journal reported such a deal could eventually generate up to $25 in royalties per car as BlackBerry develops more, and more complex, software modules.
QNX software is already in more than 60 million vehicles around the world. It’s mostly used for incar entertainment systems, but QNX is working to develop autonomous vehicles. Last fall, it became the first to conduct a road test of a self-driving car in Canada.
The deal with Jaguar Land Rover comes as the auto sector becomes increasingly important to BlackBerry, which transitioned to a software company after its smartphone business plunged to zero per cent of the global market share.
“We are at a pivotal moment, where innovative automakers, such as Jaguar Land Rover, are realizing they need to take an active role in defining the software architecture for their vehicles,” BlackBerry QNX general manager John Wall said in a statement.
“Connected and autonomous vehicles will react and drive based on rich data. Our platforms help process data efficiently and keep it secure and trusted,” Wall said.
Jaguar Land Rover focused on BlackBerry ’s reputation for safety in the announcement.
“Together with BlackBerry engineers, we will be able to access the most dynamic and up-to-date software to ensure the highest security required for our connected vehicles,” vehicle engineering director Dave Nesbitt said.
The safety of autonomous vehicles has been in the spotlight after an Uber self-driving car hit and killed a woman in Arizona on Sunday. Uber has suspended autonomous vehicle tests in the wake of the accident.
Software security is also facing high scrutiny in the telecommunications industry as the U.S. questions whether it’s safe to use network equipment from foreign players. Next generation 5G networks will be critical for the operation of autonomous vehicles.
BlackBerry’s shares are up 182 per cent in the past year on the Toronto Stock Exchange.