On 13 February 2020 the Wagenhallen in Stuttgart will open their doors for the STARTUP AUTOBAHN for the seventh time. Europe’s largest innovation platform was formed by Daimler AG in 2016, and has attracted 28 national and international companies as partners since then. On this EXPO DAY, the Daimler Group and the other companies present their jointly developed project results. For Daimler AG the current projects are heavily dedicated to “Ambition 2039”.
According to this, Daimler AG as one of the world’s leading vehicle manufacturers, already plans to offer a CO2-neutral new vehicle fleet for the various sales markets in the coming 20 years. According to the strategic concept, half of this car fleet is to operate on the roads of the world as plug-in hybrids or all-electric cars. CO2 neutrality is set to be achieved in the European plants in 2022. At the EXPO DAY Daimler will show how cooperation with startups can help the Group to come closer to its strategic corporate goals.
“Our road to sustainability is paved with innovation. I am proud to be shaping this road in a globally constituted team of creative, passionate innovators and technology experts,” says Markus Schäfer, member of the Board of Management of Daimler AG and Mercedes-Benz AG, responsible for Group research and Mercedes-Benz Cars development, procurement and supplier quality. “Technology is the key to success. It can and will help us to shape a better, more sustainable future. Cooperation with startups all over the world is an important component in this,” says Markus Schäfer.
Each EXPO DAY by the innovation driver STARTUP AUTOBAHN is the grand finale of a selection process lasting six months. In cooperation with the American accelerator “Plug and Play”, Daimler AG conducted a worldwide search for highly promising startups in recent months. Following a global screening operation, more than 1000 technology companies were placed on a shortlist.
In so-called “deep dives”, the experts from various specialist departments within the Daimler Group were able to speak directly to the creative minds in the startups and examine their ideas. “After an almost three-month phase of examination of the ideas, and analysis of their feasibility and cost-effectiveness, the number on the shortlist was reduced to just under 50 companies. In a personal presentation round akin to “speed dating”, these were invited to present their ideas to a circle of experts in Stuttgart,” says Jasmin Eichler, Director of Future Technology at Mercedes-Benz.
The final selection consisted of around 30 startups with the best prospects for success. These are now presenting themselves at EXPO DAY. Beforehand they were required to demonstrate the suitability of their idea for a major company during a 100-day pilot phase. They come from countries such as Germany, Israel, Bulgaria, Singapore, Great Britain, and the USA, and are some of the up-and-coming technology companies which will now work together with Daimler AG or one of the other 28 companies in the STARTUP AUTOBAHN cooperation.
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SOURCE: Daimler
