Presenter: Adrian van Hooydonk, Director Design, BMW Group
Adrian begins his keynote by discussing how BMW's key motive is to drive mobility. Mobility allows people to travel, meet different people, and even dream of going to anyplace that they desire. BMW is heavily geared in engineering, but how does this translate to design and mobility? Why do people have to buy BMWs? There could be plenty of reasons but we can all agree that it is probably an emotional one.
Here's a clip from their Joy advert in which BMW explains how its technologies reduce fuel consumption and emissions while at the same time increasing the driving pleasure.
Here are two things will be key in vehicles in the future according to Adrian:
1). Weight ' needs to go down because it will increase your driving range
2). Aerodynamics 'needs to improve
Every aspect of the vehicle has to be looked at and you need to see the whole car through. Even the interior matched the lightweight and futuristic design of the exterior. Interior cloths were made of a lightweight sustainable material that BMW's supplier manufactured. Overall, even though the design was born from the technical layout and wanting to address aerodynamics and lightweight, BMW believes that they have come up with an innovative shape. Design will play a key role in pushing aerodynamics and lowering emissions.
Adrian closes his presentation with this quote from the NY Times:
The most thrilling periods in design history are the ones of the greatest change, when designers interpreted shifts in science, technology, behavior and politics for the rest of us.
And of course, attendees got a chance to view the concept car! Take a look below at the shots.
Here's some footage from Adrian's Q&A session. Enjoy!