Fast-tracking the future

The Audi brand has undergone countless changes in its 112 year history, but none are so profound as the current phase which will see the company evolve to meet the fast-moving challenges of today and tomorrow.

With the fast-paced changes in technology across all facets of life, the ability to adapt and find solutions for new and emerging challenges has never been more important. The move from internal combustion engine to electric drive for example is so much more than just a change of drive method, but rather represents a quantum shift in mobility. Add the rapid advancement of digitisation and its impact on our daily lives to the mix and the current transition becomes even more profound.

To meet the current needs and those identified in the near future, Audi has developed its ‘Vorsprung 2030’ strategy, designed to future proof the brand as it transitions into a premium technology provider as well as remaining a leading premium automotive company.

“The corporate strategy ‘Vorsprung 2030’ will ensure that Audi remains viable long into the future,” says Audi CEO Markus Duesmann. The pace of change in our society is rapidly increasing. That’s why we're accelerating our own transformation.”

But the Vorsprung 2030 strategy is not a matter of change for the sake of change, but rather a considered approach to meet the demands of the future while doing the utmost to ensure that there is actually going to be a tomorrow. 

“We don’t simply develop technology for its own sake. It must be consequential and effective in keeping the world moving,” says Duesmann.

The strategy has been developed by a dedicated team, drawing on input from more than 500 Audi employees from throughout the company and from all over the globe. This intensive study identified more than 600 global trends in the mobility sector heading towards 2030 that could become relevant to the company and then evaluated their importance to the brand, homing in on ways to best deal with each.

To that end, the new strategy addresses issues such as carbon emissions and global warming, the ongoing and increased use of clean technologies and of course the move from internal combustion engine to fully electric drive. 

It embraces digitisation and connectivity between vehicles and their surrounds for greater safety, efficiency. It also looks to facilitate a future where autonomous driving will become a reality and all that that will mean in terms of additional growth potential in terms of software and services.

In addition to the plan to phase out the internal combustion engine, more strongly differentiating Audi’s all-electric vehicles from the competition through quality and design as well as increasing the added value for customers play an important role. This includes a dedicated ecosystem for electric and autonomous driving as the very idea of personal transportation evolves.

“In the age of new mobility, we not only define ‘Vorsprung’ as world-class engineering, state-of-the-art design, and a captivating digital experience,” says Oliver Hoffmann, Member of the Board of Management for Technical Development at Audi.

“We don’t just think in terms of vehicles. In the future, the focus will increasingly be on holistic mobility solutions, including the surrounding infrastructure.” 

“In the future, we will be very explicit in our definition of what driving an Audi should feel like. This also applies to highly automated driving. Our goal is to quickly transform new ideas into customer-relevant innovations,” says Hoffmann.

From efficient manufacturing processes and smart technologies in production, to working with institutes, start-ups, and global suppliers to develop best practice for swift and sustainable production long into the future.

It’s an exciting time in the automotive world and the implementation of Vorsprung 2030 will see the Audi brand remain at the very forefront of the change. But regardless of the technology, processes or future trends, the idea of excellence will remain rooted at the heart of the brand, just as it has been for the past 112 years.