Our Innovation Analysts recently looked into emerging technologies and up-and-coming startups working on innovative solutions for the automotive sector. As there is a large number of startups working on a wide variety of solutions, we want to share our insights with you. This time, you will discover 5 promising automotive startups developing components for interior design & safety.
Heat Map: 5 Top Interior Design & Safety Startups
Using the StartUs Insights Discovery Platform, covering 1.379.000+ startups & scaleups globally, we looked at innovation in the field of automotive design. For this research, we identified 91 relevant solutions and picked 5 to showcase below. These companies were chosen based on a data-driven startup scouting approach, taking into account factors such as location, founding year, and relevance of technology, among others. Depending on your specific criteria, the top picks might look entirely different.
The Global Startup Heat Map below highlights 5 automotive startups & scaleups developing innovative solutions for interior design & safety. Moreover, the Heat Map reveals regions that observe a high startup activity and illustrates the geographic distribution of all 91 companies we analyzed for this specific topic.
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Uniphy – Flexible Displays for Central Consoles
The central console commonly acts as one of the main car-driver interaction points within a vehicle’s interior. This aspect is extremely vital for delivering maximum convenience and connectivity to the design of this component. Startups and emerging companies develop novel flexible displays for vehicles’ central consoles that are conformable and customizable for various form factors. Moreover, flexible displays also allow for greater personalization and visual appeal for the drivers and passengers.
British startup Uniphy intends to achieve optimally functional flexibility and visual aesthetics in automotive dashboards and central consoles. Uniphy utilizes its Beyond Touch technology to amalgamate distinctly responsive curved and contoured touch surfaces with high-clarity three-layer optical laminates. The startup’s displays are water- and scratch-proof and are also equipped with remote gesture recognition.
Smart Wheel – Smart Steering Wheels
The transition towards autonomous vehicles (AVs) nudges designers in the automotive industry to develop innovative interior concepts for passenger vehicles. One example is the smart steering wheel that combines pressure and position sensors to scan a driver’s behavior. These types of steering wheels are particularly useful as they automatically react in emergency situations. Startups and scaleups develop smart steering wheels to enhance driving safety and meet interior design requirements.
The US-based startup Smart Wheel creates ergonomically-designed covers that transform regular steering wheels into intelligent devices. The startup utilizes its proprietary sensing technology that monitors a driver’s hands. This helps in creating visual and audio alerts to further motivate safe driving practices. The Smart Wheel solution also features a dedicated mobile monitoring application and requires no plugs or cords for connection.
Bit Sensing – In-Cabin Safety Monitoring
Startups and emerging companies are also developing in-cabin sensors that aim to monitor a vehicle’s complete interior environment. Solutions such as high-resolution cameras, radars, micromotion sensors, and video surveillance solutions help ensure the safety of a car’s interior. This then enables drivers and passengers to monitor and maintain some aspects of controlling their own safety.
South Korean startup Bit Sensing develops mini-V, a driver monitoring solution based on a radar sensor. The solution intends to accurately observe in-vehicle passenger presence, particularly monitoring their vital signs, such as heartbeat and breathing rate. Further, the solution simplifies driver behavior monitoring using gesture detection and distraction recognition technologies.
Chasm – Interior Lights & Illumination
The advancements in automotive lighting technologies include light-emitting diodes (LEDs), lasers, halogen, xenon, and digital light. Further advancements, such as fiber optics, light diffusers, and novel materials, encourages automotive interior designers to experiment and create lighting solutions that increase passenger and driver experiences. Automotive startups manufacture customizable surface-embedded lighting, lighting fabrics, and ambient illumination. These solutions help in highlighting desired areas, assisting drivers and passengers, as well as introducing new aesthetics for vehicle interiors.
The US-based startup Chasm offers high-conductivity transparent films that complement LED lights in creating new interior and exterior lighting experiences. The solution allows direct integration of LED circuits into car interior surfaces, to streamline design while also decreasing the needs for wiring materials in indicators, cockpits, and ambient lighting, among others.
Yesar Group – Augmented Reality-Heads-Up Displays (AR-HUDs)
Nowadays, automakers explore the possibilities of integrating augmented reality into the everyday routines of drivers. One viable option is setting up AR heads-up displays that project road pointers, signs, tips, and warnings onto the windshield. Emerging startups work to create AR-HUD solutions to complement the interior design, enrich driver experience, and strengthen the overall safety.
Chinese startup Yesar Group develops AR solutions for cars, based on its proprietary holographic display technology. The startup enables the casting of main driving parameters, signs, and additional information on the windshield. The startup also ensures that the information is in front of the drivers’ line of sight to comfortably assist them while driving. Yesar further extends the technology to develop AR displays for central consoles and back windshields.
What about the other 86 solutions?
While we believe data is key to creating insights it can be easy to be overwhelmed by it. Our ambition is to create a comprehensive overview and provide actionable innovation intelligence and enable you to achieve your goals faster. The 5 automotive startups developing interior design & safety solutions showcased above are promising examples out of 91 we analyzed for this article. To identify the most relevant solutions based on your specific criteria, get in touch.
