VW's Cariad Software Group to Layoff 2,000 Workers
Volkswagen’s Cariad software division has been a mess for quite a while, and its dysfunction has caused the delay of some highly anticipated vehicle launches, including the Porsche Macan. VW is restructuring the unit in hopes of righting the ship, but the move will come with significant job cuts.
The automaker said it will cut 2,000 jobs over the next two years and, unfortunately, the restructuring also comes with further product delays. All-electric models such as the Porsche Macan and Audi Q6 e-tron could see delays of up to 18 weeks waiting on version 1.2 of the software as part of the process, and the second-generation Cariad software will be completely redeveloped, causing a massive delay from its originally planned 2025 release date. Porsche hasn’t made an announcement on the Macan’s timing, but it has previously said that it would not wait on version 1.2 forever. It also noted that future models would get Google built-in, which brings features like the Play Store, Google Maps, and more.
Assuming VW can get things back on track, the Audi Q6 e-tron will be released in March 2024 instead of late 2023. It, along with the upcoming Porsche Macan EV, marks notable steps forward in electrification for Volkswagen. The new PPE electric platform brings 800-volt architecture, which can drastically reduce charging times.
[Image: T. Schneider via Shutterstock]
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Chris grew up in, under, and around cars, but took the long way around to becoming an automotive writer. After a career in technology consulting and a trip through business school, Chris began writing about the automotive industry as a way to reconnect with his passion and get behind the wheel of a new car every week. He focuses on taking complex industry stories and making them digestible by any reader. Just don’t expect him to stay away from high-mileage Porsches.
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Yeah, I heard this yesterday on Autoline Daily. CARIAD has really struggled, and as a result, VW and Audi are partnering with the Chinese on technologies and even platforms. VW Group will have a hard time developing software-defined vehicles.
They should put the clever diesel coders on the project.
Happy Trails
Wait a second. The Automotive Industry is the Best Industry in the World, and of course has the Best Employees in the World (why would the Best Management Teams in the World recruit anyone lesser). Of all those great employees, Coders are surely the Best Most Competent And Always So Very Thorough Employees of All (with the Very Very Very Best Management Teams overseeing everything with only the Best Best Really Super Good Management Practices). And we all know that VW is the #1 Automotive Company (Internet says by size, Automotive Journalism says in Every Other Way). So what's the problem??