OTA updates: for better or worse?

For years now, some car models have offered the option of keeping the vehicle up-to-date via over-the-air (OTA) updates. As with a smartphone, these updates are downloaded to the car via the internet and can then be installed at the touch of a button. Some new functions can also be activated in this way. And that was just the beginning.

A huge business
The latest megatrend in the automotive industry is called Software Defined Vehicle (SDV). This refers to a new development approach that focuses on software-controlled functions. An SDV is based on powerful computing hardware, a real-time operating system and a modular software architecture, which can then be kept up to date via over-the-air updates. In future, the vast majority of new models will be designed and constructed using this development approach.

The SDV opens up new areas of business for car manufacturers. In future, not only apps, but also complete driving functions can be activated retrospectively via OTA updates - not for free, of course. The economic potential for car manufacturers appears to be considerable: Industry analysts predict that software-based car-related services are likely to generate billions in sales in the coming years. «Software will become one of the most important growth drivers for our company,» confirms General Motors boss Mary Barra.

The biggest advantage for customers is that their own vehicle is always up to date in the digital age. Digital features, from ambient lighting and AI voice assistants to semi-autonomous driving systems, can be offered in ever greater numbers and in ever more elaborate versions, even long after the vehicle has been purchased.

Not developed to the end?
But there is also a downside to OTA updates. There are fears that new cars are no longer fully developed when they are purchased, as functional defects can simply be corrected later via an over-the-air update. In other words, the car is not developed down to the last detail, but rather a beta version is launched on the market, which can then be corrected later via an OTA update. Of course, no manufacturer would admit this - but various new electric models, particularly from China, show that these concerns are entirely justified.

Chinese electric car manufacturers make extensive use of the OTA update function. Whereas it used to take around six years to develop a new vehicle, the Chinese sometimes bring their new models onto the market in less than two years - and then adapt them via the software. This also has its advantages, as it allows manufacturers to respond to customer feedback in the shortest possible time. Chinese models are launched in the European markets and then gradually adapted to European preferences via OTA updates.

A bland aftertaste
Another advantage is that car manufacturers can rectify defects, which can always happen during development, across the board within a few days instead of having to carry out complicated and very expensive recalls. This is a clear advantage not only for new manufacturers from China. European manufacturers are also making extensive use of OTA updates: The latest electric platforms from Mercedes-Benz and BMW also have a modern electronics architecture with central high-performance computers and their own operating systems - and are kept up-to-date via OTA updates. «This means that our cars are no longer getting older, but better and better over the years,» says Mercedes boss Ola Källenius.

In China, meanwhile, they are already going one step further: the electric start-up Nio and the brand Lynk&Co, which has just been launched in Switzerland, have integrated a feedback function into the vehicle operating system that allows drivers to report improvement requests directly. This allows the manufacturer to react even faster and in a more targeted manner. However, the bland aftertaste of buying a new car, because you are ultimately buying an immature product, will probably remain for the time being.