A car prototype that can change colors to match the driver’s mood, talk like a human, and have no dashboard screens has been unveiled by BMW AG.
The BMW I Vision Dee, unveiled at a grand opening for the CES conference here on Wednesday night, previews technology that Chief Executive Oliver Zipse said would go into production in 2025. The Neue Klasse, or “new class,” is a new lineup of electric vehicles that BMW intends to introduce.
The BMW concept car had features that might be difficult to put into mass production at competitive prices. Zipse, on the other hand, promised to a crowded theater at the Palms Casino that BMW “will bring this technology into our Neue Klasse… in serious production.”
The dashboard’s lack of screens was one of the idea’s most striking aspects. An image projection on the car’s windshield is instead controlled by a single digital slider on the dashboard. At its most advanced, the windshield might instead display a digital, virtual world than the actuality of city streets.
According to Zipse, “Digital leadership is not about who has the biggest screen. Most of BMW’s luxury segment rivals disagree with that stance, starting with electric vehicle pioneer Tesla Inc., which has made a sizable, high-definition screen the centerpiece of its vehicles’ dashboards.
Arnold Schwarzenegger, an actor and former governor of California, made an appearance during the presentation, which also featured a prominent role for “Dee,” a digital assistant with a female voice who spoke with Zipse and other participants. BMW said that the “Dee” technology could transform future automobiles into the “ultimate companion,” parodying its long-standing tagline “the ultimate driving machine.”
BMW displayed the most recent E-Ink technology application as a final flourish. The 240 individual color cells in the I Vision Dee car can each be changed. The prototype changed quickly from a light green hue to a dark purple hue to red with white racing stripes.
