Amazon Web Services (AWS) and BlackBerry announced this week they will co-develop BlackBerry’s Intelligent Vehicle Data Platform, Ivy. The platform is a scalable, cloud-connected software platform that will allow auto makers to provide a consistent and secure way to read vehicle sensor data, normalise it, and create actionable insights from that data both locally in the vehicle and in the cloud.
BlackBerry Ivy addresses a data access problem in the automotive industry. Modern cars and trucks are built with thousands of parts from many different suppliers, with each vehicle model comprising a different set of proprietary hardware and software components. These components, which include an increasing variety of vehicle sensors, produce data in specialised formats.
The highly specific skills required to interact with this data, as well as the challenges of accessing it from within contained vehicle subsystems, limit a developer’s ability to innovate quickly and bring new solutions to market. BlackBerry Ivy will solve for these challenges by applying machine learning to that data to generate predictive insights and inferences. This makes it possible for automakers to offer in-vehicle experiences that are highly personalised and able to take action based on those insights.
The platform will support multiple vehicle operating systems and multi-cloud deployments in order to ensure compatibility across vehicle models and brands. It will build on BlackBerry QNX’s capabilities for surfacing and normalising data from automobiles and AWS’s broad portfolio of services, including capabilities for IoT and machine learning.
It will run inside a vehicle’s embedded systems, but will be managed and configured remotely from the cloud. As a result, automakers will gain greater visibility into vehicle data, control over who can access it, and edge computing capabilities to optimise how quickly and efficiently the data is processed.
For example, the platform could leverage vehicle data to recognize driver behaviour and hazardous conditions such as icy roads or heavy traffic and then recommend that a driver enable relevant vehicle safety features such as traction control, lane-keeping assist, or adaptive cruise control. Ivy could then provide automakers with feedback on how and when those safety features are used, allowing them to make targeted investments to improve vehicle performance.
Drivers of electric vehicles could choose to share their car’s battery information with third-party charging networks to proactively reserve a charging connector and tailor charging time according to the driver’s current location and travel plans.
Auto makers will be able to use the platform’s application programming interfaces (APIs) to share data and outputs with their software development teams, giving them the ability to innovate, while also protecting customer privacy and security by controlling whom can access vehicle and app data and at what level of detail.
“BlackBerry and AWS share a common vision to provide automakers and developers with better insights so that they can deliver new services to consumers,” says John Chen, executive chairman and CEO of BlackBerry. “This software platform promises to bring an era of invention to the in-vehicle experience and help create new applications, services, and opportunities without compromising safety, security, or customer privacy. We are pleased to expand our relationship with AWS to execute this vision and deliver BlackBerry IVY.”
Andy Jassy, CEO of Amazon Web Services, says: “AWS and BlackBerry are making it possible for any automaker to continuously reinvent the customer experience and transform vehicles from fixed pieces of technology into systems that can grow and adapt with a user’s needs and preferences. Through this joint effort with BlackBerry, we will provide automakers with the insights, capabilities, agility, and speed they need to thrive in an increasingly connected world. As automakers seek to race ahead in their digital transformations, BlackBerry IVY empowers them to build their brands and set the standard for connected vehicle services across the automotive industry.”
The partnership was announced during the AWS Re:Invent conference, which began virtually on Monday.
To learn more about BlackBerry IVY and general availability, visit
https://blackberry.qnx.com/en/aws.