TomTom auto boss ready to battle Google as tech race intensifies

What was the first big auto industry breakthrough for TomTom?

If you go back 10 years when we started with Renault, we brought all the TomTom technology into the car: our hardware, software, maps and connectivity. We were also providing the SIM card. We had our web application to update the map, personalize the device and we provided customer care. People would call TomTom if they had a problem, not Renault.

Last October TomTom announced an extension to its deal with PSA Group to provide navigation components beyond 2020. The deal includes maps, routing and traffic information for the Peugeot, Citroen, DS, Opel and Vauxhall brands. Is this a step forward?

We will do more in the next generation than in the current one. And we will do it very differently.

How so?

The overall development setup is different. The number of partners that are brought together has dramatically increased. These are people you have to work with as part of an ecosystem. There is a lot more interface work to determine how to connect things and how to check that everything works together seamlessly.

How will TomTom benefit from autonomous cars?

What is the autonomous driving challenge from a map perspective? The base map. We are mapping, or remapping, the roads in high-definition format for autonomous driving. That is an evolution of the standard map-making work. The challenge with autonomous driving is that if something happens on the road you are on, you want to know. We will use the data from the sensors on the autonomous cars and send it to the cloud to generate map updates whenever they are relevant and then resend that to the car. We use what we call “auto stream” for that. I call this the Netflix of autonomous driving – a map on-demand service. It guarantees that your autonomous car gets the latest available map wherever it’s driving. We think we have the best high-definition map ecosystem for the autonomous driving industry. Ultimately, you want to make people really confident that the car knows what it is doing.

How does TomTom view Apple?

Apple is a customer. Our maps are on the iPhone. Uber is also using our technology and Microsoft Azure is powered by TomTom location technologies. Those businesses are increasingly using our maps, software and services for their purposes and their customers’.

Google recently won work from Volvo that used to be TomTom’s. Is Google a rival that worries TomTom?

Google used to be a customer of TomTom maps but they decided to do their own thing. At the moment, I think Google is really going into embedded systems [Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi and Volvo have announced deals to embed the Android operating system in their vehicles]. If they want to really do what we do, which is working with these complex setups of multiple parties and adapt to what car manufacturers are looking for, then they become a competitor for the automotive business. The competition is welcome. We say: Good luck. It’s not an easy business. I also don’t think they are used to dealing with those types of long [automotive] cycles. We are working with PSA in Europe. We are working with Mitsubishi as well, until 2021 when Google starts. Let’s see where they land. In the meantime, we are not standing still.

What about Garmin? Is it a big rival?

We don’t see them as a strong competitor. They are missing a big asset, which is the map. We make maps. They are more in the hardware and they are in the airplane and shipping industries so they have diversified. Overall, we have been clear since the beginning in our automotive strategy and we benefit from having key assets, meaning the maps, software, and connected services. That’s a key differentiator.