Artificial intelligence (AI) is an evolving technology that is still growing, but it is undoubtedly getting better. 

For all we know, factories might not even need lights 20 years later, because most of them will be operated by AI. We see a lot of R&D happening within the AI framework, giving good results. Besides, we see newer frameworks coming in. 

AI-based visual inspection, too, has been growing by leaps and bounds, reshaping automotive inspection. It helps examine detailed defects in vehicles, providing automotive OEMs the opportunity for accuracy and cost-savings. 

One such company focusing on AI-based visual inspection is Lincode Labs, whose AI-backed visual inspection solution, Lincode Visual Inspection System (LIVIS), is its current focus. The company was started with complete research and understanding of the top challenges that manufacturers globally face. After interviewing close to 100 customers, 86 percent of them said that quality inspection happens to be their biggest challenge.

“We were intrigued by this and went to various quality inspection people and identified the technology they were using,” says Rajesh Iyengar, Founder and CEO, Lincode Labs, and goes on, “We went on to find out that the technology hasn’t changed for two decades and there were a lot of false calls in it. That’s when Lincode stepped in and built a product around specific challenges focused on the automotive industry.”

Automotive OEMs, too, look at specifically reducing these false calls and improving productivity, which Lincode has helped solve through its AI-backed visual inspection solution. “The industry standards were 150 to 200 false calls per million inspections. So, in our case, we are doing it in zero to four parts per million,” Iyengar cites.  

Iyengar further reveals that due to this, 80 percent of their customers are repeat orders. “That’s because they are completely happy with the inspection process and the way the inspection is automated,” he mentions.  

LIVIS
Traditional vision systems cannot catch up with AI, as Iyengar says. He avers, “LIVIS stands out because we have built it as a platform. The scalability becomes easier if you’re going to deploy it across multiple factories and locations. But also, the foremost important thing is that it is completely made as a product. Thus, AI is commoditised. With the LIVIS platform, we can bring the cost and time to deployment down.” 

Lincode’s role in the automotive industry
What’s interesting is that even if Lincode caters to the manufacturing industry as a whole, it first addressed the automotive industry. The company researched the market size of various manufacturing companies and the automotive industry took the top spot, with close to USD 542 billion of global value.  

“We started with the automotive industry but pivoted later,” Iyengar tells us and continues, “So, instead of looking at just the automotive or any other industry, we turned our attention to steel, metal, plastic, glass etc. We basically went to the surface and saw how steel and metal are produced today. Whether it’s a CNC machining or forging or casting process, these are major processes used for any industry across the globe involving steel and metal. We understood that steel and metal are dealt with in the same way globally. Therefore, it made sense to go to the surface and into these kinds of defects specifically, and then generalise that and start building a model towards it. This, plus making AI as a product, has made deployment easier across the globe.” 

R&D centre in Bengaluru
Lincode recently opened a new R&D centre in Bengaluru, which also has a significant role to play in deploying the company’s solution across the world.

Stressing on the fact that evolving models are important in AI, Iyengar states, “It’s a continuous process; it’s not that you just build a model and you’re set. We have a big roadmap in the product development, and the Bengaluru R&D centre is going to play a major role in that. We are going to conduct deep research with various data collected across the globe and do various testing with that.” 

Staying ahead
What’s more, Lincode recently closed a funding round in December last year. Catering to a constantly evolving industry like the automotive, Lincode, too, strives to make sure that its visual inspection solution stays ahead and is put to use. “There are about more than 600 parts in a car and each part is segregated – like the structure, wiring, engine components etc.,” Iyengar shares and continues, “These segregations are made so that we can target the sector of the product. For example, when it comes to engine blocks, there is a specific model with a huge data set around engine blocks. This is how we stay ahead of competition.” Iyengar also adds that their trials with various use cases made them understand that inspection alone is not important but also the way the inspection is done. 

Essential skill sets for AI vision systems
Leveraging AI-based visual inspection solutions in the automotive industry is bound to increase productivity, and the cost of labour will also come down because of automation. “Today, most manufacturers use secondary inspection, which can be cut off straight away. This will improve their productivity and also reduce the risk of delays,” Iyengar enlightens. 

Moreover, AI vision systems come with their share of essential skill sets to bring out the best in the automotive industry. Iyengar states that, in general, skilling is required for the factory people. “This could be at various levels,” he puts across and adds, “It could be for the operators, the IT administrator or even the software development team. Hence, deep training is required, which can be somewhat cumbersome because it could be a bit challenging for the operator. So, an IT person might be needed in order to help the operator every time there is a downtime.” 

Covid-19 and AI-backed visual inspection
Such training or skills could certainly come in handy, because Iyengar claims that the need for AI-backed visual inspection solutions in the automotive industry has increased since the Covid-19 pandemic. “Unplanned shutdowns happened during Covid, because of which employees could not report and manufacturing could not continue properly,” he responds and adds, “Hence, a lot of investments are happening because of this. In fact, even now, a lot of employees are still not reporting and the labour problem has become global. It has become tough to get skilled workers. This has led to the adoption of autonomous manufacturing for automotives, where AI is going to play a big role.”

Meeting industry requirements
For an industry that is an economic force globally, AI-based visual inspection is certainly meeting the high-quality requirements of the customers of the automotive sector. Plus, we already see companies like Volvo using the technology. Safety surpasses any requirement, and this requirement can be fulfilled if quality is top-notch. And quality will be at its best if automotive manufacturers can perform production quality inspections in the most efficient way. (MT)

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Southeast Asia’s first operational smart battery-swapping station for electric taxis and ride-hailing vehicles has been officially launched on Phuket Island, marking a regional and global milestone in EV infrastructure deployment outside China.

The opening ceremony, co-hosted by UCAR Inc. and UNEX EV, showcased their partnership with Thai energy leader SUSCO.

Pitak Pruittisarikorn, Global CEO of UNEX EV, said, "The station employs UOTTA intelligent battery-swapping technology, featuring standardised, modular hardware design and AI-enhanced station control systems. These innovations significantly increase efficiency and intelligence in battery-swapping operations, laying a critical foundation for the coming era of unmanned and automated mobility."

Pairoj Srilamul, Chief District Officer of Phuket, commented, “Phuket is a world-renowned tourist destination, attracting tens of millions of visitors annually. In an era that advocates low-carbon economies and green development, we are pleased to witness UCAR introducing this cutting-edge battery-swapping model. It provides a faster, more convenient and economically viable path to electrifying commercial road transport. I believe we will see a significant increase in battery-swappable vehicles operating on Phuket roads in the next 2–3 years."

Dr. Akaranan Ariyasripong, CEO of Auto Drive, said, "Auto Drive has deployed a fleet of UNEX EV vehicles equipped with UOTTA battery-swapping systems for daily taxi and ride-hailing services in Phuket. From an operational perspective, battery-swapping reduces the upfront cost of electric vehicles. Moreover, battery swaps can be completed in just a few minutes, avoiding the need for long charging waits. This saves valuable operational time for drivers and improves fleet efficiency and reliability. Auto Drive will continue expanding its battery-swappable vehicle fleet and extend the service to other cities across Thailand."

The Phuket battery-swapping station features AI-driven control, modular hardware and advanced data systems, supporting multi-model compatibility and communication channels for Level 4 autonomous vehicles. 

Zhan Xie, Strategic Investor and Co-Chairman of UCAR, said, "The UOTTA system aligns with the global mobility revolution –  ‘smart traffic infrastructure demands second-level energy replenishment for EVs.’ In high-frequency, time-sensitive scenarios like Robotaxi operations, traditional charging models are insufficient. Battery swapping, with its speed, safety and unmanned potential, is emerging as the mainstream energy solution. The bottleneck for scaling autonomous fleets is no longer just self-driving technology, but autonomous energy replenishment infrastructure."

He added that UCAR’s Vehicle–Station–Cloud–Token system is building an intelligent, data-driven network integrating mobility energy replenishment and energy trading, essential for the future of global smart mobility.

The new station marks the start of wider plans across Southeast Asia. UCAR and SUSCO are rolling out UOTTA infrastructure across nearly 1,000 Thai fuelling stations, with facilities intended for taxis, public transport and commercial vehicles. The model will soon be replicated in Singapore, where 50 stations and 5,000 battery-swappable EVs are scheduled within three years.

Internationally, UCAR has set up joint ventures in Portugal and is planning further deployments in Peru, advancing a global network that links clean energy and smart mobility through battery swapping technology.

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HighTec EDV-Systeme, Elektrobit and Infineon Technologies have announced a strategic collaboration aimed at accelerating automotive software innovation by enabling the integration of Rust applications with AUTOSAR Classic basic software.

As ecosystem partners within Infineon Technologies’ Drive Core for its AURIX™ microcontrollers, HighTec and Elektrobit are jointly launching a development bundle designed to simplify and accelerate software development for the automotive industry. The bundle includes Elektrobit’s EB tresos AutoCore and HighTec’s automotive-grade LLVM-based Rust and C/C++ compiler, specifically tailored for the AURIX TC4x families of microcontrollers.

Through this close integration, embedded software developers will gain seamless access to all necessary tools and software in a single package. The solution is geared towards enabling the use of Rust for functional safety applications, even in the most complex automotive Electronic Control Units (ECUs).

Rust is increasingly being recognised as a critical programming language in automotive environments due to its performance, reliability and memory safety. Its strong safety attributes are especially relevant as the industry shifts toward software-defined vehicles and prepares for evolving cybersecurity and functional safety regulations such as UN R155 and the EU Cyber Resilience Act.

By combining HighTec’s ISO 26262 ASIL D-certified Rust compiler with Elektrobit’s AUTOSAR Classic basic software, the collaboration enables a hybrid development model. This allows new software components developed in Rust to operate alongside existing C/C++ code, reducing risk while maintaining compliance with stringent safety standards.

The Drive Core software bundle for Infineon’s AURIX TC4x includes the complete toolchain to start development: EB tresos configuration tool, Infineon MCALs and an extensive set of examples and tutorials for building AUTOSAR components in Rust.

Additionally, Elektrobit’s EB tresos has been enhanced to support clean and efficient Rust development, aiming to minimise or eliminate the need for "unsafe" code. The integration offers a robust toolchain capable of generating system-access code while also supporting advanced static analysis tools like Rust’s Clippy and automatic code formatting. This strengthens safety assurance and improves development productivity.

HighTec’s Rust and C/C++ compiler, based on the well-established LLVM open-source framework, is the first Rust compiler developed specifically for Infineon’s AURIX TC3x and TC4x microcontrollers. It includes advanced architecture-specific optimisations and a rapid build system designed to facilitate the development and certification of safety-critical software.

Infineon, which boasts the industry’s largest Microcontroller Abstraction Layer portfolio, continues to embrace an ecosystem approach to foster innovation and scalability. Its Drive Core software bundles are designed to provide foundational support for modern automotive software development, combining microcontrollers, basic software and extensive tool support into a cohesive development platform.

This partnership marks a significant step forward in the integration of modern programming languages like Rust into traditional automotive software frameworks, aligning with the industry's growing focus on safety, security and performance.

Patrick Will, Senior Director of Automotive Software, Infineon, said, "We believe that Drive Core is a game-changer for the automotive industry, and we are excited to see companies such as HighTec and Elektrobit leveraging it to drive innovation."

Florian Bartels, Senior Expert and System Architect at Elektrobit, said, “By taking Rust to the AUTOSAR Classic environment, Elektrobit continues to drive innovation in the automotive software industry. Rust’s inherent safety features and its seamless integration into existing AUTOSAR Classic environments make it a perfect fit for modern ECU development, enabling developers to create reliable, secure and high-performance automotive software.”

Mario Cupelli, CTO, HighTec, said, “Our partnership with Elektrobit empowers automotive customers to build safer and more efficient software solutions. By offering our proven Rust compiler along with Elektrobit’s tools in a comprehensive bundle, we give automotive suppliers and OEMs a competitive edge.”

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BatX Energies, a critical material recovery and battery recycling company, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Rocklink, a Germany-based rare earth element (REE) and specialty metal recycling company to establish India’s first integrated rare earth magnet recycling and refining ecosystem.

The partners state that the collaboration is an outcome of the increasing alignment under the EU–India Trade and Technology Council (TTC), which will focus on fostering sustainable and secure critical mineral value chains between Europe and India.

As per the understanding, Rocklink India and BatX have initiated, what they claim is India’s first lithium-ion battery and permanent magnet recycling cluster in Sikandrabad, Uttar Pradesh. The idea is to build a robust, scalable and environmentally responsible rare earth magnet recycling ecosystem in India.

As per the understanding, Rocklink will deploy its proprietary Magcycle reverse logistics system across India, creating a traceable collection network for end-of-life permanent magnets, including NdFeB, SmCo and AlNiCo, sourced from motors, electronics and industrial waste.

The partnership will also jointly develop and commercialise advanced solvent extraction (SX) technologies to efficiently separate and purify high-value rare earth elements such as Neodymium, Praseodymium, Dysprosium, Terbium, Gadolinium and Holmium.

The aim is to commission India’s first fully integrated rare earth refining facility, designed to meet zero-liquid-discharge (ZLD) standards and export compliance benchmarks. 

They will co-develop and file patents for the technologies in both India and Europe, creating a joint intellectual property portfolio.

The collaboration aims to enable a domestic rare earth supply chain in India while simultaneously strengthening Europe’s access to sustainable, transparent and circular sources of critical materials.

Utkarsh Singh, CEO, BatX Energies, said, “This partnership marks a defining moment in India's journey toward rare earth self-reliance. We are proud to lead this initiative alongside Rocklink and to carry forward the vision outlined in the EU TTC for building circular and transparent critical mineral value chains between India and Europe.”

Leonard Ansorge, Director, Rocklink, said, “Rocklink is committed to establishing vertically integrated long-loop recycling solutions to support government efforts to establish a functional rare earth magnet supply chain in India. Our alliance with BatX brings together our materials and refining expertise with BatX's innovative and practical approaches on refining to deliver tangible results in short development cycles.”

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Parkobot, a startup offering an ‘Airbnb for parking’ using Internet of Things (IoT) smart barriers, has secured INR 20.9 million in seed funding led by Inflection Point Ventures and participation from high-net-worth individuals (HNIs).

The start-up aims to use the funds towards expanding infrastructure, new markets, strengthen backend and increase product portfolio.

Parkobot enables owners to monetise private parking spaces hourly. A mobile app provides real-time, location-based booking. The platform features an in-house tech stack, scalable IoT devices and automation.

Mitesh Shah, Co-Founder, Inflection Point Ventures, said, “Urban parking is a huge challenge facing today’s cities. Poor planning and lack of proper parking spaces lead to encroachment on roads, illegal parking and congestion. However, Parkobot is driving the change by bringing in technology and smart parking systems that provide real-time availability of parking spaces and making underutilised private parking spaces available to the public.” 

At present, Parkobot operates in a market with a global total addressable market (TAM) of USD 114 billion and an Indian TAM of USD 9.5 billion, growing at 6.5 percent CAGR. In stealth mode, the startup has deployed spots at key locations.

Amrit Choudhury, Founder, Parkobot, said, “Parkobot envisions decongesting India’s streets by utilising underutilised private parking spaces, transforming them into revenue-generating assets via our IoT-enabled Parkobot barrier and app. Our goal is to create cleaner skies, less traffic congestion and seamless urban mobility for all.” 

The start-up claims to have over 20,000 monthly bookings and uses a proprietary Parking Management System (PMS), smart boom barriers and pre-booking to boost parking revenue and reduce manual intervention.

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