The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders Ltd (SMMT) has launched the Future Mobility Challenge, a new initiative to spawn partnerships, investments and acquisitions between the world’s leading automotive brands and innovative technology start-ups and SMEs.

BMW, Jaguar Land Rover, Bosch, Ford and Toyota, have partnered with SMMT to encourage new and small businesses to devise solutions to seven key mobility challenges.

Technology innovators can submit ideas that address these opportunities and the best solutions will be invited to pitch at the Future Mobility Challenge event in October.

If successful, applicants will be able to negotiate a range of partnership propositions, from mentoring, ideas incubation and investment, to piloting, routes to market or acquisition.

Start-ups and SMEs are invited to provide solutions to one or more of the following innovation opportunities:

• Harnessing the potential of mobility data – creating customer value through, for example, seamless payments at fuel forecourts and chargepoints or integrated insurance services.
• Intelligent solutions for intelligent fleets – innovative solutions that go beyond existing telematics offerings, potentially helping operators to optimise fleets, reduce their environmental footprint or support drivers’ wellbeing.
• Urban mobility solutions for future cities – smart use of data to help tackle challenges such as congestion, parking and EV charging infrastructure constraints, or perhaps deliver integrated propositions to promote active mobility.
• Innovative shared and on-demand mobility models – solutions to identify and deliver new, flexible models of car ownership or sharing via a single platform to bring mobility to more people.
• Creating new and superior customer experiences in the age of hyper convenience – perhaps using augmented or virtual reality and remote services or blockchain solutions to deliver efficient business processes and premium and lifestyle customer propositions.
• New connected car services – unique solutions to unlock greater potential from connectivity such as location services, journey management or remote services including, for example, predictive maintenance.
• Future vehicle technologies – new solutions for everything from artificial intelligence and machine learning, to automated driving, glass and display technologies, audio, and battery management.

Technology bodies and membership organisations are also supporting the Future Mobility Challenge. These include the Transport Systems and Digital Catapults, Grant Thornton, Level39, Plexal and Tech London Advocates.

Mike Hawes, SMMT chief executive, said: “The Future Mobility Challenge provides the perfect opportunity for automotive industry leaders and innovative technology SMEs to collaborate. From data analytics and blockchain to the Internet of Things and health and wellbeing, we’re looking for innovators across the technology community to help automotive explore new horizons, appealing to the continuously changing demands of consumers. We are delighted to have on board such strong automotive brands and partners and are looking forward to what will be, I am sure, intense competition from innovative SME and start-ups.”

The deadline for applications is June 30, 2018 and around 50 innovators will then be shortlisted and invited to pitch in closed sessions at the Future Mobility Challenge event at Here East, Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park on October 17, 2018.