NXP India - Roundtable

L-R: Kankana Karkun, Country HR Leader – India, NXP; Hitesh Garg, VP and India MD, NXP; Lars Reger, EVP and CTO, NXP; Robert Habeck, Vice-Chancellor and Federal Minister for Economic Affairs and Climate Action, Germany and Amardeep Punhani, Sr. Director R&D and Noida Site  Head, NXP.

NXP Semiconductors, one of the leading suppliers of semiconductors, hosted German and Indian policymakers, industry leaders and executives at its site in Noida for an exclusive roundtable event. 

The event was attended by Lars Reger, CTO, NXP, along with business and industry leaders from German, Indian and European companies, as well as respective government officials, including Robert Habeck, Germany’s Vice-Chancellor and Federal Minister of Economic Affairs and Climate Action. The event provided an open dialogue that explored the potential of German-Indian cooperation in technology, industrial, automotive and other key sectors.

During the event, Minister Habeck and the President of IEEMA, Vikram Gandotra, signed a joint declaration, making Germany a partner country for the ELECRAMA 2027, an Indian flagship electronics trade show.

“There is great potential for industrial and technological cooperation between Germany and India. Germany’s advanced technological expertise and innovation complement India’s robust manufacturing ecosystem and its technology achievements and ambitions. We thank NXP for hosting this event and helping bring these industry leaders together to foster fruitful discussions and future growth opportunities,” said Robert Habeck.

The event took place in New Delhi amid the Indo-German intergovernmental consultations and the 18th Asian-Pacific Conference of German Business (APK) and attended by government ministers, policymakers and business leaders of both countries. 

The informal and exclusive roundtable format represents an exceptional opportunity for policy and industry leaders from India and Germany to engage in an open and candid environment to discuss India’s growth markets, emerging technology trends, and opportunities for mutual collaboration.

NXP India believes that the potential for industrial and technological cooperation between Germany and India is particularly great: Germany's advanced technological expertise and innovation complement India's impressive technological as well as industrial achievements and ambitions, robust manufacturing, and dynamic market growth, creating fertile ground for mutually beneficial partnerships and groundbreaking advancements.

Lars Reger said, “Collaboration is key to unlocking the full potential of technological innovation. As a global company, NXP has long been committed to fostering international collaboration and exchange. This roundtable illustrates the vibrant potential of Indo-German technological partnerships.”

The exclusive roundtable was followed by technology demonstrations from NXP alongside innovative solutions from Indian and Asian startups. These demonstrations covered various advancements, including those in electric vehicle (EV) motorbikes, artificial intelligence (AI), smart manufacturing, and 6G applications, illustrating the vibrant potential of Indo-German technological partnerships.

Noida is one of NXP’s largest sites. It is a Centre of Excellence for hardware and software design, validation and enablement specifically around edge processing and automotive processing. A VLSI team within the India Design Centre advances trends through sophisticated process technologies and efficient design methodologies

Hitesh Garg, India Country Manager, NXP, said, “This event at our Noida office is a testament to NXP’s unwavering commitment to promoting international cooperation and maintaining a healthy, ongoing dialogue and synergy. Deepening cross-regional collaborations allows our industry to elevate and foster innovation and technological advancements.”

Ola Electric Intros S1 X+ E-Scooter With In-House 4680 Bharat Cell

Ola S1 X+

Ola Electric has introduced the S1 X+ 5.2 kWh electric scooter, featuring the company’s indigenously developed 4680 Bharat Cell. The company claims that the launch marks the first time this cell technology has been integrated into a mass-market product. The e-scooter is available at an introductory price of INR 129,999 until 15 April.

The S1 X+ 5.2 kWh utilises an 11 kW mid-drive motor and an integrated motor control unit, providing a claimed top speed of 125 kmph and an IDC range of 320 km. It features a brake-by-wire system and front disc brakes. The use of the Bharat Cell reflects the company's strategy of vertical integration, which encompasses cell development, battery pack engineering and vehicle manufacturing.

Currently, Ola Electric’s portfolio includes the Gen 3 S1 scooter series and the Roadster motorcycle range. The S1 Gen 3 line-up consists of the S1 Pro+ and S1 Pro in various battery configurations, while the mass-market segment includes the S1 X+ and S1 X variants. The Roadster series is offered in X+ and X configurations with battery capacities ranging from 2.5 kWh to 9.1 kWh.

“With S1 X+ 5.2 kWh, we are taking our 4680 Bharat Cell to the mass market at scale. The same technology platform we built for our most advanced products is now powering a scooter designed for much wider EV adoption. This is exactly what vertical integration enables - the ability to innovate deeply, scale quickly, and bring our best technology to more and more customers, faster. S1 X+ 5.2 kWh is where performance, range and scale come together, and is another important step towards making EVs accessible to every Indian,” the company said in a statement.

Bosch And Qualcomm Expand Strategic Partnership For ADAS Solutions

Bosh - Qualcomm - ADAS

Bosch and Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. have announced an expansion of their strategic collaboration to include Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS). This move builds upon their established partnership in cockpit solutions and aims to address the automotive industry's requirement for scalable technology in automated and connected vehicles.

Bosch stated it has now delivered more than 10 million vehicle computers globally using Qualcomm’s Snapdragon Cockpit Platforms.

The extended agreement includes new production programmes for ADAS that utilise Bosch’s vehicle computer architecture powered by the Snapdragon Ride platform. A central component of this collaboration is the development of platforms that combine cockpit and ADAS functions on a single system-on-chip (SoC).

This integration is designed to align with the strategic shift towards software-defined vehicles, allowing automakers to reduce architectural complexity, power consumption, and manufacturing costs.

The Bosch ADAS integration platform is designed as a modular computer capable of fusing data from multiple sensors to create a 360-degree environment model. This system supports a range of functions from entry-level assistance, such as lane keeping and distance regulation, to higher-level automated driving. The joint engineering efforts have already secured several design wins in the East Asian market, with the first vehicles featuring these consolidated platforms expected to enter the market in 2028.

By migrating from numerous individual control units to a small number of high-performance computers, the partnership provides a path toward centralised vehicle architectures.

These solutions are engineered to meet safety standards up to ASIL-D while enabling consumer features such as hands-free driving and intelligent automated parking across various vehicle segments.

Christoph Hartung, Member of the Bosch Mobility business sector board, said, “By combining leading-edge compute technology with our system integration expertise – hardware, software, and safety – we enable automakers to meet the rising demand for personalised, safe and comfortable driving experiences. The growing success of our collaboration with Qualcomm Technologies underlines a central value Bosch brings to the industry: we provide the robust, high-performance computing platforms that form the backbone of today’s software-defined vehicle.”

Nakul Duggal, EVP and Group GM, Automotive, Industrial and Embedded IoT, and Robotics, Qualcomm Technologies, said, “Our collaboration with Bosch spans the full spectrum of vehicle compute – from high‑performance cockpit systems to scalable automated driving solutions and emerging centralised vehicle architectures – all powered by Snapdragon Digital Chassis automotive platforms. ADAS is where performance and safety must scale in the real world. By expanding our work with Bosch into production-ready ADAS platforms, we’re helping automakers bring advanced driver assistance across vehicle lines more efficiently, with a clear path to centralised compute.”

Toyota Kirloskar Motor And Wipro 3D To Establish Additive Manufacturing Centre

Toyota Kirloskar Motor - Wipro 3D

Toyota Kirloskar Motor (TKM) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Wipro 3D to create a Centre of Excellence (CoE) for additive manufacturing. The facility will be located at the Toyota Technical Training Institute (TTTI) in Bidadi, Bengaluru. The partnership is intended to facilitate skill development and the integration of 3D printing technologies into production environments.

The centre will provide students with exposure to industrial applications of additive manufacturing, including rapid prototyping and the development of production aids. Wipro 3D will provide technical expertise and training modules covering internships, apprenticeships and workshops. The curriculum will also incorporate digital manufacturing and resource optimisation as part of an emphasis on Industry 4.0 technologies.

By leveraging these manufacturing capabilities, the initiative aims to reduce lead times and improve assembly line efficiency. The TTTI, which focuses on vocational education in trades such as mechatronics and welding, doubled its intake to 2,400 students in 2023. This collaboration aligns with the institution's objective to build technical talent for the automotive sector.

G Shankara, Chief Strategy Officer, Toyota Kirloskar Motor, said, "Our Human Resource Development philosophy at TKM follows core principles of Toyota such as, Continue the Quest for Improvement, Show Respect for People, under which we thrive hard to develop individuals in the Latest Technology of the New Age Era of automotive field. We are also committed to nurturing skilled talent and strengthening India’s manufacturing ecosystem. This collaboration will play an imperative role in nurturing future-ready talent, while contributing meaningfully to the Government’s Skill India Mission.”

Yathiraj Kasal, Business Head and General Manager, Wipro 3D, added, “This association reflects our commitment to strengthening India’s manufacturing ecosystem through capability building and innovation, while creating industry-relevant learning experiences.”

TomTom Intros Unified Speed Restrictions For Automated Driving

TomTom

TomTom has introduced Unified Speed Restrictions, a new service providing updated speed limit data for global regulatory compliance and Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS). The service is designed to help vehicle manufacturers exceed the minimum requirements of Intelligent Speed Assistance (ISA) regulations.

The service integrates multiple static and live data sources into a single output. By combining various inputs, the system provides continuous updates to vehicle software to ensure speed limit identification remains accurate across different driving environments.

Data sources utilised include:

  • Unsigned speed limits: Based on regional road classifications.
  • Roadside sign recognition: Camera-based detection of physical signs.
  • Probe data: Aggregated information from connected vehicles.
  • Variable speed limits: Real-time data from electronic overhead gantries.

Beyond safety compliance, the service supports automated driving functions by providing data for predictive path planning and smoother vehicle manoeuvres.

The solution is available as an API or pre-integrated within the TomTom ADAS SDK. The SDK is modular, allowing manufacturers and Tier 1 suppliers to incorporate the data into existing software stacks without vendor lock-in. This architecture is intended to reduce development costs and accelerate the deployment of predictive assistance features.

Manuela Locarno Ajayi, SVP of Product Engineering, TomTom, said, “Accurate and trusted speed information is foundational to road safety, regulatory compliance and automated driving at scale. With Unified Speed Restrictions, we are equipping automakers with a globally consistent, future‑ready foundation that reduces complexity, enabling higher levels of automation.”