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"Ever-Faster Processing Power and Integrated Vehicle Software: They Form the Central Nervous System of the Mobility of the Future"

CEO Nikolai Setzer

"We are also at the forefront when it comes to vehicle connectivity. Thanks to our technologies, we have already connected 50 million vehicles permanently to other vehicles, the internet or the traffic infrastructure worldwide. Connectivity is a key yardstick for the future viability of personal mobility. Ever-faster processing power and integrated vehicle software are speeding up this development. They form the central nervous system of the mobility of the future. And this is precisely what we are developing.

We are the first automotive supplier to have put a central high-performance computer into volume production. Since the fall of 2019, it has been the core component of the entire Volkswagen ID. series. We are therefore all the more delighted that a new ID. model is being presented to the world public today – with many of our technological features on board. The same applies to the BMW iX. With our high-performance cockpit computer, we provide the necessary processing power to run the functions in the display, ensuring seamless interaction between driver and vehicle.

The order volume for high-performance computers currently totals around €5.5 billion. In 2021 and 2022 alone, more than 20 vehicle models worldwide were equipped with Continental high-performance computers. Just recently, we also received our first order for a computer of this type from China. This will be used in the electric vehicles of a major Chinese vehicle manufacturer from 2023 onward. We are developing this high-performance computer on the basis of our global platform, largely at our software development center in Chongqing in southwestern China, which we inaugurated in July 2021. In the mid to long-term, we will employ up to 500 software and IT experts there."

Abstract of the speech at the Annual Press Conference as of March 9, 2022. Please find here the complete comments - pdf (129KB) of the Chairman of the Executive Board, Nikolai Setzer, and the company’s Chief Financial Officer, Katja Dürrfeld, on the occasion of the Continental Media Webcast: Fiscal 2021.