Interview: Alwin Bakkenes, head of software program engineering, Volvo Automobiles
Alwin Bakkenes, head of software program engineering at Volvo Automobiles, reckons that main a staff to develop the expertise stack powering the following technology of mobility on the automotive big is likely one of the finest jobs you may think about.
“I’m not saying it’s at all times simple, however it’s extremely rewarding and nice enjoyable,” he says. “Individuals are obsessed with our merchandise, and also you get on the spot suggestions on the standard of what you do from shoppers – whether or not that’s from associates, household or a neighborhood like Reddit. There’s simply a lot suggestions, and that motivates and makes us higher.”
Bakkenes stories to Volvo CTO Anders Bell and is a member of the prolonged govt administration staff that oversees operational governance. “I’m a part of that group as a result of software program, in fact, has a large transformational influence on the corporate,” he says.
On a day-to-day foundation, Bakkenes’ staff works intently with expertise and content material companions to ship buyer experiences, with improvements in protected automation, core computing structure and Android-based infotainment providers. His staff manages expertise related to Volvo’s superior driver help methods (ADAS) and an in-house synthetic intelligence (AI) manufacturing unit.
“We additionally handle cellular community contracts as a result of we function in 85-plus nations globally,” he says. “So, we now have a big scope, and our work defines an enormous a part of how the autos behave and helps us to create several types of relationships with our prospects.”
Connecting autos
Bakkenes joined Volvo in November 2022, having beforehand been vice-president at Aptiv, chairman of the board of administrators at Smashing Concepts, and govt vice-president for automotive at Luxsoft.
One among his massive achievements at Volvo has been main the digital transformation that accompanied the revealing of the EX60, the primary automobile designed to launch with Google Gemini AI assistant and connectivity delivered by the Snapdragon Auto Connectivity Platform from Qualcomm Applied sciences.
As Laptop Weekly found in January, the EX60 is essentially the most clever Volvo and might journey 810km on a single cost. The automobile additionally has the most recent iteration of HuginCore, the producer’s in-house-developed core system for its software-defined autos (SDVs).
“Volvo Automobiles has at all times been recognized for security,” says Bakkenes, referring to the journey the in-house software program staff has taken throughout its digital transformation. “Over time, after we began to do improvements when it comes to collision avoidance – as a result of, in fact, avoiding a collision is best than defending folks in a collision – we began to convey pc imaginative and prescient and radar into automobiles.”
Bakkenes says the software program staff discovered that getting information from automobiles digitally would allow them to do much more. “So, we began making each single automobile linked and began doing extra in-house growth. We constructed an AI manufacturing unit and constructed an in-house staff of some 3,000 builders that construct this software program stack for us,” he says.
“One among our largest accomplishments with the optimisation work that we did for the EX60, the place we did our second-generation zonal structure, was that we actually simplified the method. We decreased weight, a whole lot of packaging area, we made the expertise way more environment friendly and made it relevant to each single automobile in our cycle plan.”
Digitising the stack
Bakkenes says the results of this digital transformation is that Volvo has transitioned from a mechanically oriented firm to an organisation that efficiently manages its expertise base, with HuginCore sitting on the coronary heart of its future automotive improvements.
“We now have a single tech stack technique for our automobiles, which finally offers us extra time to spend on constructing improbable buyer options and experiences,” he says. “And that’s one of many largest elements of the journey that we’ve been on over the previous few years.”
HuginCore options {an electrical} structure, a core pc, zone controllers and software program. The title Hugin comes from Nordic mythology – Odin had two ravens, Hugin and Munin. Bakkenes says Hugin was the raven who flew to scout after which whispered in Odin’s ear about all the pieces within the neighborhood.
“We now have a single tech stack technique for our automobiles, which finally offers us extra time to spend on constructing improbable buyer options and experiences”
Alwin Bakkenes, Volvo Automobiles
“That’s like what we’re doing with the core system,” he says. “HuginCore perceives the world round it and offers us the correct info to make selections on avoiding collisions and extra. It’s the core system and tech stack that we’re standardising on. And, in fact, it’s way more than a bit of compute. It’s car structure, cloud infrastructure and manufacturing unit infrastructure.”
Starting with the EX60 implementation, Bakkenes says the goal is to make sure the corporate builds its improvements round this stack, reasonably than utilizing a number of platforms. “Which is finally not how fashionable tech corporations, like Apple, would do issues,” he says, referring to the corporate’s shift to turning into an organization that manages its expertise basis.
“For instance, we now have a partnership with a UK firm known as Temporary that’s actually good at database analytics on battery cells and the way you retailer vitality as quick as attainable. So, not solely do we now have a superb, sturdy 800-volt system, we’re capable of push a whole lot of vitality into the cells for a chronic time frame, that means that we keep away from the usual curves of charging automobiles.”
Delivering innovation
The progress made by Bakkenes and his staff was recognised not too long ago, with Volvo attaining S&P World Mobility Degree 5 functionality in SDVs, the very best class in its evaluation of automotive software program maturity. Notably, Volvo is the one legacy producer to have achieved this ranking.
“They checked out what we have been doing,” says Bakkenes, referring to the analysis course of. “We defined to them how we work and what the structure appears to be like like. Having a totally software-defined structure means we should always create vital buyer advantages. So, we’re proud. It’s recognition that we’re doing good work.”
The popularity from S&P World highlights Volvo’s makes an attempt to enhance car performance by means of software program, together with over-the-air updates so as to add security options, unlock quicker charging speeds, enhance driving vary and improve person experiences. Bakkenes says the corporate’s digitisation is all about forsaking conventional domain-based architectures.
The brand new method being pioneered by Volvo focuses on three ranges: a high-performance compute cluster the place the staff works with key companions, corresponding to Nvidia and Qualcomm; zonal structure with high-integrity purposes that require low latency and quick response instances, corresponding to for safety-critical features, together with brakes and acceleration; and infotainment, the place Volvo works intently with Google and its Android working system (OS).
“We work very closely with companions to construct the foundations for that technique. We work with Nvidia on growing the safety-critical, high-performance execution atmosphere, so we are able to execute high-integrity purposes on compute clusters, corresponding to ADAS,” he says.
“We additionally work with Google deeply and intently, as a result of the Android platform creates an openness and an ecosystem that may be a improbable basis to construct a contemporary infotainment system, which has customer-facing performance, corresponding to Gemini for conversational AI and Google Maps, and an open app retailer that we use to usher in large quantities of content material.”
Embracing AI
Volvo continues to hone its method to SDVs. As Laptop Weekly reported on the time, the corporate prolonged its partnership with Google in Could 2025. Volvo believes that with Gemini within the automobile, drivers can higher perceive what they need by means of pure conversations.
In addition to utilizing AI providers to spice up inside operational effectivity, Bakkenes says the corporate makes use of rising expertise in two key product areas.
First, in collision-avoidance methods. With a robust heritage in car security, Volvo has collected thousands and thousands of information factors since 2020, all with buyer consent, to enhance ADAS.
“We’ve seen that constructing AI fashions that we practice on what occurs and what’s going to go mistaken – thereby preventig issues from taking place – is extremely useful,” he says. “So, we actually constructed an organization, a subsidiary known as Zenseact, which is a part of my scope. I’m the chairman of the corporate, and it’s deeply built-in into our approach of working in engineering.”
Second, Bakkenes says his staff is concentrated on customer-oriented, AI-enabled merchandise. Utilizing instruments corresponding to Gemini, drivers will use in-car methods to plan routes, assist schedule actions and organise their lives. “AI is not only about telling you issues,” he says. “It’s about turning into extra agentic and taking good care of duties in your life.”
Whereas Volvo has made vital advances in AI with the launch of the EX60, the corporate is raring to make sure that drivers of older autos may profit from its data-powered providers. To that finish, the corporate not too long ago introduced that Google Gemini is rolling out to Volvo autos relationship again greater than 5 years. Bakkenes suggests this choice is a step change in how drivers work together with automobiles and the way producers help them.
“We’re bringing Gemini to each automobile we’ve produced since 2020,” he says. “Six years in the past, we had no thought what a transformer-based conversational assistant was or would change into. So, the truth that we are able to convey Gemini to these automobiles is improbable.”
Scaling enhancements
Bakkenes displays on the digital transformation adjustments he’s overseen through the previous few years and suggests his staff is approaching what he calls “harvest time”.
“We now have a basis the place we now have a superb structure,” he says. “We’ve a considerable amount of high-performance computing to develop and develop sooner or later. The inspiration of the expertise is there, and it’s about making use of and scaling it.”
Bakkenes says the will to push Gemini-powered providers to older autos exhibits that his staff’s efforts aren’t simply centered on tomorrow’s expertise – they’re additionally centered on supporting long-standing prospects who’ve dedicated cash to the automobile firm.
“The harvesting half is about us saying, ‘OK, so now we are able to put extra vitality into enhancing the experiences’, and which means refining the person interface implementation, and tweaking and optimising it till you get a product that matches day-to-day utilization completely,” he says. “We would like our automobiles to maintain bettering over time.”
