Connected car

Just as the steam engine has come to symbolize the industrial revolution of the 19th century, perhaps no single object represents the democratic, consumer-centered economies of the 20th century better than the mass-produced automobile.

At the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona in February, SEAT released a concept car that represents a radical new answer to the challenges of urban reinvention. The Minimó, combines the safety and comfort of a car with the agility and easy parking of a motorbike.

We all are aware of the need to adapt to an increasingly changing context, and that is what innovation is all about - about changing the rules of the game and building a new foundation on which to create a future that is yet unknown.

The IoT (Internet of Things) and the connected car reach rural areas thanks to a drone and offer predictive information to drivers in areas of poor visibility or that are difficult to access.

"We believe in CNG as one of the many alternative energies that will coexist in the future." Andrew Shepherd, Head of CNG Products, SEAT.

On the stylish and youthful streets of Barcelona, carmakers, tech giants, telecom companies and start-ups are creating an inspiring new vision of transportation for the 21st century city.

In the next decade, the auto industry will undergo greater change than it has witnessed over the last century. Electrification, digitization, connectivity and mobility will all define personal transportation in the future.

As the global car industry prepares for the long transition to electric vehicles, there is growing interest in the potential of compressed natural gas (CNG).

As automakers around the world race to reinvent the car for the 21st century city, Spanish brand SEAT has one major competitive advantage that has put it firmly in pole position.

As a decade of unprecedented change ends and a new year dawns, the social and economic consequences of technological innovation are becoming ever more apparent. On the frontline of transformation is the global car industry, which dominated the economy of the 20th century and is now advancing towards an uncertain future.