As our sister-site Electrek covers so well, the automobile landscape is clearly changing with electric vehicles replacing gas-powered cars, autonomous features potentially replacing drivers, and Apple even developing an EV of its own. But Porsche wants no part in that future, says CEO Oliver Blume. Reuters reports that Blume told German media this week essentially that a Porsche is meant to be driven, and that an iPhone is meant for your pocket, not the road:
While Blume was using the iPhone line largely to explain away the need for computerized vehicles and embrace the nature of high-performance cars like Porsches, it’s a curious one as the new 911 features Apple’s CarPlay …
“An iPhone belongs in your pocket, not on the road,” Blume added, saying that Porsche did not need to team up with any big technology companies.
There’s also a mild dash of the classic Ed Colligan line in there with Blume clearly defining the place for real cars and the place for iPhones in a dismissive way. Frankly, if given the choice between a Porsche as-is or a Porsche with autonomous driving capabilities, I’d choose the latter hands-down (although, for the record, I am not declining the traditional Porsche if offered!).
And smarter, iPhone-like cars certainly seem to be the way of the future.
While ‘autonomous features’ can be loosely defined to include any feature that assists the driver and not just full-on self-driving cars, Reuters points out that research by Boston Consulting Group shows market penetration for these features will reach 13% and make up an estimated $42 billion market by 2025.
While the project has already had its fair share of expected turbulence, the rumored Apple Car could debut around that time with one reported target for introduction set for 2020.
And evidence shows autonomous vehicles are safer than human drivers (which isn’t hard to believe for me) with Tesla and Google leading the way forward in that arena for the time being.
What do you think? Is a Porsche not a Porsche unless you’re fully in control behind the wheel, or are autonomous features going to be a part of every car in the future?
