Sunday 22nd August 2021
Wolfsburg with 24 world novelties
Study: Volkswagen more innovative than Tesla
When it comes to technical innovations and innovations, German carmakers land at the very top of the ranking of the Center of Automotive Management. VW is the front runner and, together with Daimler, even leaves Tesla behind. However, new competition arises from elsewhere.
In an international comparison of automobile manufacturers, Volkswagen comes up with the most technological innovations. This is the result of the annual innovation ranking of the Center of Automotive Management (CAM). “The German automobile manufacturers are doing very well so far from an innovation point of view,” said CAM director Stefan Bratzel. For the first time, three Chinese automotive groups also made it into the top ten in the innovation ranking.
For the ranking, the car experts analyzed the technological innovations of 30 global car manufacturers with a total of around 80 car brands. 654 technological innovations were recorded individually and rated according to criteria such as originality and customer benefit. The result: Volkswagen achieved an index value of 149 with a total of 67 innovations, including 24 world novelties, and thus landed in first place ahead of Daimler with an index value of 133. The Wolfsburg-based company had already topped the ranking last year. Third place went to Tesla with an index value of 93.
Volkswagen scored particularly well with innovations in the field of electromobility and user interfaces, as Bratzel explained. Daimler impressed with the innovations in the field of autonomous driving. Tesla improved by three places compared to the previous year, among other things because of the high charging power and range of its models.
Japanese and French beaten off
BMW also did well with 88 index points and landed in fourth place. The Chinese manufacturer SAIC follows in fifth place, and with Great Wall and Geely two other Chinese automobile groups made it into the top ten. Japanese and French corporations, on the other hand, landed at the bottom of the innovation ranking. The world’s largest automobile manufacturer, Toyota, was only 13th, Honda was 18th. Renault and PSA deteriorated year-on-year and were 14th and 17th respectively.
“The paradigmatic change in the industry can only be mastered by a high level of innovation on the part of the players,” explained Bratzel. However, many automobile manufacturers did not have the necessary resources and skills to successfully develop innovations. They are therefore dependent on extensive cooperation. German automakers have done well in terms of innovations so far. In the future, however, in addition to Tesla, they would “also have to deal with new, innovative competitors from China who are well positioned in the core fields of electromobility, networking and autonomous driving,” warned Bratzel.
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