Clearing the Air: Journey of Innovation in the Automotive Industry
The intersection between technological innovation and customer management in the automotive industry presents unique challenges and opportunities, an area where I’ve spent considerable time as the CTO of Cabinair, a health tech startup for the automotive industry. This journey, rich in innovation and learning, exemplifies the impact one can make, even as a small player, in an industry dominated by giants. As I share this story, it’s not just about the milestones we’ve achieved at CabinAir, but also about the broader vision and passion that drive technological advancements.
In the rapidly evolving world of automotive technology, the search for innovation is often constrained by cautious automakers and their network of risk-cautious supplier giants.
These industry players seem to hesitate to embrace technological leaps, favoring the protection of their current businesses, which evidentially harms the introduction of new technologies in the industry.
At CabinAir, we were determined from the start to improve the air we breathe while we spend time in a vehicles on the road. We knew we had a product that could make a difference, superior to what was available on the market at the time. However, as we approached the potential customers in the early days, we quickly realized that the concept of breathing cleaner air was not really the idea we had to convince the customers about. It was to convince them to take a bet on an unproven innovation and technology from an unproven supplier, without track record or systems in place. Convince the customer to take this risk, was really the challange we had in front of us.
Reflecting on the journey we started back then, it’s encouraging to see what can be achieved with a decent product idea, a team of dedicated believers, and the courage to take risks, combined with a touch of luck. Now, a couple of years later, the product already ensures clean and healthy air for Volvo Cars and Polestar owners worldwide, making a significant impact on people on the road. While the list of automakers with CabinAir products will be extended in the future, the impact we are making is not only connected to our own business success.
A clear trend can be noticed with automakers taking the topic of in-car air quality more seriously, motivating market players to refine previous technologies to make them competitive, as well as exploring new technologies similar to what CabinAir offers. Hence, after these years of convincing and challenging the status quo, we now see a shift to more advanced clean air solutions inside vehicles and a technology leap that in the end will benefit the users of the cars significantly.
Obviously, it would be arrogant to give CabinAir all the credit for this shift . The pandemic, increased customer awareness, wildfires in the USA, and technical developments at competitors have all contributed to the industry’s increased focus on air quality. But I still believe that CabinAir, as a pioneer, has contributed to the trend. What is cool about it, in this case, is that many more people will breathe clean and healthy air when spending time inside their cars, regardless of what purification system they have in , CabinAir product or not.
While I am determined and a strong believer that CabinAir will become a major market player within the field of clean air for automotive, I cannot resist feeling pride in the impact we have made on the industry. It might have happened also without CabinAirs efforts, but I am certain it would have taken even longer time for the car manufacturers to realize the need to push the technology to the next level, and for their giant suppliers to address the issue with new eyes.
To me, this experience is a story about the power of technology to drive positive change. Even for an underdog like CabinAir, it is possible to make a large-scale impact, maybe more importantly, indirectly. The goal of writing this post was not just to emphasize the importance of clean air; it was to share an example of what a decent idea, high ambitions, courage, and dedication can lead to.
