BMW Demoing Autonomous Connected ZEV

Greg Hyde

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2nd January 2019

BMW is offering “virtual drives” of the Vision iNEXT, its new autonomous, connected, zero-emissions vehicle, at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2019.

The car will also feature the automaker’s intelligent personal assistant (IPA) and the virtual drives will be provided through a “mixed-reality installation” it is showcasing. CES attendees will be able to begin driving the car themselves but its autonomous driving tech will purportedly take over soon thereafter. This tech then interacts with the IPA, which suggests a route for it to take and activities for the vehicle’s occupants to undertake when their journey is complete.

BMW calls the technology deployed in the Vision iNEXT ‘shy tech’, because it claims it “only becomes visible when needed”. It says the IPA uses “natural language for interaction with the vehicle and to access functions”. The tech will be available in new model BMWs from March, including the new X5. BMW’s Motorrad unit is also demonstrating its new R 1200 GS autonomous motorcycle at CES.