JLR Tech Fest 2017
Gary Pusey reports back from first-ever JLR Tech Fest
Our favourite car brand plays host to new innovations and ideas – we send Gary Pusey to report back
There were two questions on my mind as I arrived at JLR’S inaugural Tech Fest in London. Firstly, why was a global car manufacturer hosting an international media event on such diverse themes as futurism, robotics, artificial intelligence, the future of mobility, and whether technology can save humankind? And, secondly, why had our esteemed editor sent me along to represent LRM? After all, I am a bit of a dinosaur when it comes to my own vehicles, having a bit of a phobia when it comes to too much tech in cars. I still like to have a fighting chance of maintaining and fixing them myself, and all this despite a 35year career in the information technology industry. Maybe my cars became an antidote to what used to be my high-tech professional world, providing me with things that are visceral and physical, that can be kept going with my hands and a set of spanners.
As I listened to the presenters, flown in from across the world, it quickly became clear to me why JLR had chosen to hold such an event. The technology they were presenting for discussion will impact all of us, and already is. We are on the cusp of another phase of technology convergence, such as the one that brought computing, telephony and mobile technology together. This one, perhaps best summarised by the phrase ‘The Internet of Things’, will be far more wide-reaching, though, and JLR’S perspective is that it needs to understand and embrace this technology, not just to build cars, but because this convergence will impact how we as drivers use and interact with
our cars, and they with us, and many other things in our daily lives. And even if you like your Land Rovers techfree and relatively simple, there will be no escaping the impact of this revolution on everything else you do.
Setting the scene in his keynote speech, JLR’S CEO Dr Ralf Speth said: “We stand on the brink of the mobility revolution. Autonomous, connected, electrified and shared vehicles. The impact of the changes we are about to embrace will be huge across all sectors of our economy and every section of society – globally. The opportunities are great – enormous social and health benefits, an end to congestion, zero accidents, no more tailpipe pollution and clean air. The risks are huge, too. To jobs. To our privacy. To our freedom. This mobility revolution will change lives – profoundly.”
Dr Speth also issued a clear challenge to the UK government regarding this new world. As my colleague Dave Phillips has rightly pointed out in his column in LRM, the government needs to add more substance to its bold assertion that petrol and diesel vehicles will be banned by 2040. What is the government doing regarding the vast number of power points that will be required to charge the new generation of EVS? And what about the grid that will be required to support them? And the estimated 20 new power stations that will need to be built to feed them?
JLR sees itself in two important ways. Firstly, as a technology company that builds cars, and indeed ‘Technology with Heart’ was the theme for the entire event. Secondly, JLR defines itself as a people company. That latter point is not just management speak about how it values its 45,000 employees. It is also about the people employed in its extended supply chain and supporting industries, and it is also about its customers. Because the interaction between technology and people is at the heart of how many companies must now view themselves and the things they offer to their customers, whether they make cars or refrigerators.
I think JLR is to be commended for this bold and thought-provoking initiative, and it also provided them
“This mobililty revolution will change lives – profoundly”
with a showcase for some of their leading-edge developments in terms of their vehicles. To be fair, I felt there was a distinct bias towards the Jaguar side of the business, but available for inspection from the Land Rover side was a Range Rover Sport with Autonomous Urban Drive which enables it to operate without a driver through a city, obeying traffic lights as well as negotiating T-junctions and roundabouts. It is expected to be ready for production within the next decade, so we won’t need to be worrying about driverless Land Rovers just yet.
And then there was the Digital Butler in the new Range Rover Velar, allowing you to interact with your car from anywhere in the world. You can start it with your smart phone, lock or unlock it, locate it, check your fuel levels and even warm the cabin before you get in. According to JLR “the technology can also learn your daily drive, anticipate your needs, serves you what you want, when you want it, but never intrudes.” Such is artificial intelligence…
The Project Hero Discovery was also making its public debut in the UK. Announced a few months ago, this is a fascinating vehicle designed and built by Special Vehicle Operations as an advanced communications vehicle featuring a roof-mounted drone with the ability to land while the vehicle is in motion. It was created to support JLR’S partnership with the Red Cross, and is currently being trialled by the Austrian Red Cross’ emergency response teams, with a view to helping save lives by allowing faster response times to disasters.
To demonstrate the future of their past, JLR had on show a fascinating 1968 Jaguar E-type, dubbed the E-type Zero. Engineered by Jaguar Classic at the company’s new Classic Works in Warwickshire, the car features a cutting-edge electric powertrain capable of 0-60mph in 5.5 seconds. While the innovation is to be applauded, and it is interesting that the company’s engineers could make it happen (I was assured that it starts, goes and stops) I fervently hope that the future of my 1949 Series I and my 1970 Range Rover does not involve such drastic surgery, which to my mind destroys the integrity, character and driving experience of the
original vehicles. I just hope that good sense will prevail, and a way to use older cars will be found in this newly-emerging world.
As to why I was there, I reckon our esteemed Ed was hoping to inspire me to invest in a more modern Land Rover, a development that as he knows would certainly go down well with my family. Undoubtedly, I came away inspired by the way JLR is positioning itself at the head of the pack in terms of the impact of the next wave of technology on the way we will all live our lives, and it is all fascinating and challenging stuff. But I think I’ll wait a bit longer before I trade in the Tdi.