Key Highlights: See What CES 2025 Revealed About the Future of Mobility and Tech

What’s the first thing that comes to mind when someone mentions CES? Sleek gadgets? High-tech wearables? This year, the show really focused on the future of mobility, and it's clear that there's much more to it than just what’s under the hood.

From AI-powered assistants to holographic windshields, CES 2025 showcased how vehicles evolve to be smarter, more connected, and undeniably futuristic.

Cars that understand you

Imagine telling your car, “Take me to the best coffee shop near the coast,” and it gets you there without a fuss. That’s the kind of experience Mercedes-Benz teased with its updated MBUX system, now powered by Google’s conversational AI.

BMW went a step further with its Panoramic iDrive, a display spanning the windshield that overlays navigation, real-time alerts, and other information directly in the driver’s view. Hyundai Mobis brought an entirely new dimension to this theme with its full-windshield holographic display. From the outside, it looks like a regular window, but for the driver, it transforms into an augmented reality screen, projecting vital information such as navigation and driving data.

And if you’re looking for a more personalized approach? Harmon brings you an AI avatar - Luna - designed to personalize interactions through voice and visuals to create a more natural and intuitive bond between occupants and vehicle technology.

These innovations highlight how much drivers value intuitive and connected experiences. To develop them, companies require solutions that are practical, reliable and focused on what customers value most – comfort and customization.

See how we support automotive OEMs by providing the tools needed to bring such concepts to life. Whether it’s crafting systems for personalized interactions, boosting infotainment, managing subscriptions, or implementing connected car technologies, we work with you to address driver demands.

Software defines the future

The automotive industry is increasingly defined by software. At CES 2025, several advancements highlighted how technology solves key challenges for software-defined vehicles (SDVs).

Intel and AWS are working together to improve SDV development. Their Automotive Virtual Development Environment integrates Intel’s automotive hardware with AWS cloud tools. It allows automakers to develop and test software earlier in the development process. This not only speeds up workflows but also reduces costs and makes it easier to bring advanced features to vehicles.

Building on the importance of real-time data, HERE Technologies has partnered with AWS to develop live-streaming maps for SDVs. These are designed to support automated driving and advanced assistance systems (ADAS). They also introduced HERE SceneXtract, a simulation tool that helps train these systems by replicating real-world driving scenarios to make sure that vehicles can handle diverse conditions.

NVIDIA is taking this one step further with the DRIVE AGX Thor, a centralized computing system for SDVs. ?It is designed to unify multiple vehicle functions, including automated and assisted driving, parking, driver and occupant monitoring, digital instrument cluster, in-vehicle infotainment (IVI), and rear-seat entertainment, into a single architecture.

AI in vehicles: systemic innovations for safety and comfort

Not surprisingly, AI was a major focus at CES 2025. Here’s a quick look at how it transforms both in-car experiences and driver safety.

Let’s first talk about AI assistants. SoundHound AI presented an in-vehicle voice agent, which allows drivers to order food, make payments, or find nearby pickup locations - all without taking their hands off the wheel.

Tech giant Qualcomm continues to expand its Snapdragon Digital Chassis (its suite of cloud-connected platforms for automakers). The updates introduced biometrics for driver identification, real-time driver monitoring, and features tailored to create a safer and more comfortable in-car experience. Qualcomm focuses on improving driver comfort and safety through multimodal contextual awareness and cloud-based services.

Honda also explored the potential of AI with its new 0 Saloon and 0 SUV prototypes. Powered by the ASIMO OS, these models offer Level 3 automated driving and adaptive controls that respond to individual preferences.

Taking a collaborative approach, Sony and Honda presented the Afeela 1 – a model that combines advanced AI-driven features with a focus on safety and entertainment. Equipped with a panoramic dashboard and an AI assistant for natural interactions, it also includes 40 sensors for comprehensive 360-degree safety monitoring. At the same time, Sony introduced entertainment options like noise-canceling technology and an immersive infotainment system to balance practicality with comfort.

If you're interested in exploring how AI is being implemented across the sector, check out our guide to Generative AI in Automotive. See how BMW, Toyota, Mercedes-Benz, and other industry leaders are putting generative AI to work and get practical ideas for using it in automotive solutions.

AI beyond vehicles

Beyond automotive, AI found its way into homes, businesses, and even robotics. Let’s take a closer look at how these advancements might influence everyday life.

First up, smarter living spaces. LG and Samsung gave their smart TVs a boost by adding Microsoft’s Copilot AI. These TVs now offer personalized content recommendations based on user preferences and provide tools to better organize streaming services.

For businesses, Qualcomm introduced something exciting: the AI On-Prem Appliance Solution. This hardware lets companies run AI directly on-site. Why does that matter? Faster processing, better control over sensitive data, and fewer costs tied to cloud services mean a win all around.

And then there’s robotics. NVIDIA brought its Cosmos platform to the table, designed to help train robots and autonomous systems like self-driving cars. Developers can fine-tune these technologies by creating lifelike synthetic data to handle real-world situations more reliably.

Sustainability in focus

CES 2025 also highlighted how technology is being used to create greener mobility solutions.

Toyota provided updates on Woven City, its experimental "city of the future" near Mount Fuji. The project is designed as a living lab for urban technologies, focusing on eco-friendly mobility and renewable energy solutions.

Fisker's Ocean SUV made an impression in the EV space with interiors crafted from various recycled materials, including ocean plastics, plastic bottles, and other sustainable sources. Meanwhile, Lightyear offered a glimpse into a renewable future with its solar-powered vehicle, which combines solar power with traditional charging.

Autonomy takes the wheel

Self-driving technology has transitioned from experimentation to reality. Zoox turned heads by offering robotaxi rides around Las Vegas, proving that autonomous ride-hailing is not just a concept anymore.

Meanwhile, Waymo introduced its upgraded sensor suite, which combines cameras, lidar, and radar. This new system focuses on improving safety and enabling precise navigation in complex urban environments and pushes driverless transportation closer to the mainstream.

When it comes to autonomous systems, Nvidia remains a key player in the field. Toyota announced that its next-generation vehicles will use Nvidia’s DRIVE AGX Orin platform and DriveOS operating system, bringing advanced driving assistance and automated functionalities to its fleet. Nvidia also partnered with Aurora Innovation and Continental to mass-produce self-driving trucks by 2027.

Beyond passenger vehicles, companies like John Deere and Kubota demonstrated autonomous systems designed for industries like farming, mining, and construction. Oshkosh also made its CES debut with autonomous cargo handlers designed for airports, demonstrating the wide-ranging potential of this technology.?

What comes next?

CES 2025 offered a look into a future defined by smarter, more adaptable technologies. In the automotive world, cars are evolving into intelligent systems that can update, personalize, and adapt long after they hit the road. Beyond transportation, AI is transforming how we interact with our homes, businesses, and even the devices we rely on daily.

The key challenge now is moving these innovations from concept to everyday use. Whether it's improving cars, connected devices, or work processes, these advancements are closer than ever to becoming part of daily life.

If you're working on the development of software-defined vehicles, AI-powered features like real-time navigation, or personalized infotainment, Grape Up can help you build, test, and deploy solutions that meet industry demands.

What’s your biggest challenge in bringing these technologies to life? Let’s discuss how we can support your vision.