The German car manufacturer has joined the Eclipse SDV Working Group as a strategic member, enhancing international cooperation on open-source software technologies for contemporary vehicle applications.
The BMW Group has become a strategic member of the Eclipse Foundation’s Software Defined Vehicle (SDV) Working Group, promoting international cooperation on open-source software technologies for modern vehicles. With over two decades of in-house software development experience and setting industry standards in digital vehicle access and over-the-air updates, BMW brings substantial expertise to the group.
Frank Weber, a member of the BMW AG Board of Management, emphasizes that BMW’s extensive experience in software development from chip to cloud enhances the working group’s efforts—the automotive industry benefits from increased collaboration in developing non-competitive software. With hundreds of millions of software code lines, the modern vehicle ecosystem is expanding rapidly. This growth underscores the importance of collaborative development of core software functionalities, where the Eclipse SDV Working Group serves as a pivotal hub for open-source software advancement in the automotive sector.
Christian Salzmann, Vice President of the BMW Group Global Software Strategy and Software Factory, notes that BMW values open-source as a collaborative software development model and actively contributes to projects like ‘Zuul’. Mike Milinkovich, executive director of the Eclipse Foundation, welcomes BMW’s role in driving significant shifts in vehicle design through its strategic membership.
As a strategic member, BMW will guide the direction of the SDV Working Group and lead various projects. BMW’s longstanding relationship with the Eclipse Foundation spans over a decade, and the company will continue to engage in and drive innovation in the openMDM and openPass working groups. Additionally, BMW will maintain its contributions to AUTOSAR, collaborating with industry partners to advance standards for automotive electrical and electronic architecture.
The Eclipse SDV Working Group aims to foster the development and promotion of open-source solutions for the automotive industry, adopting a code-first approach to create the industry’s first open-source software stacks and tools for future vehicle generations. This member-led, vendor-neutral organization includes a governance framework for open-source IP management and collaboration, steered by a technical advisory board and steering committee that oversees the strategic and technical roadmap.
BMW’s specialist departments, particularly from the Software Factory, will actively participate in SDV projects, aiming to develop software for a series of projects with the partner network. BMW Group employees will also engage in SDV Hackathons and Community Days, collaborating closely with experts from other member companies.