IBM announced today that it is a pilot partner of BMW CarData. Recently released, BMW CarData will allow up to 8.5 million BMW customers globally to make use of third party services in a secure and transparent way. IBM is working to sign up auto makers for its cloud-computing platform and stake a claim in the burgeoning market for connecting passenger cars with customized services based on real-time vehicle performance. Last year, it announced a similar deal with General Motors Co.
BMW is the first OEM to release an open data platform with the introduction of BMW CarData. BMW CarData gives BMW ConnectedDrive customers the ability to share telematics data from their BMW vehicles with third parties of their choice.
As a pilot partner, IBM has integrated Bluemix with the BMW CarData platform. Vehicle data will be enhanced by IBM Watson IoT, using cognitive and data analytics services to enable third parties, such as automotive repair shops or insurance companies, to develop entirely new customer experiences.
IBM’s cloud platform Bluemix also gives developers access to the entire service catalogue from IBM and its ecosystem partners to build and run innovative new service offerings. Customers will have to actively agree to share their encrypted telematics data when they want to use a specific service from a service provider.
In addition, IBM will also act as a neutral server for extended vehicle access. This allows for the gathering of data from BMW vehicles but also vehicles from additional automotive manufacturers. The first use cases and client services are expected to launch in the fall of 2017.
