There are increasing software components to vehicles, with new intelligence being added and them getting more sophisticated. SaaS is a way to deliver the software, and we are seeing more software in the automotive industry. Venkat Nathan, Founder and CEO, Nesh LIVE, talks to us about the start-up’s transition to a vehicle connectivity solutions company, their USP and more.

While we see large players like Tesla choosing to build their vehicle connectivity solutions inhouse, SaaS could be the way to go for medium to small players in the automotive OEM space to enable these solutions. However, they may need to approach companies that offer full-stack SaaS solutions for vehicle connectivity to compete with the large players.

One such company is Nesh LIVE, which provides SaaS solutions for vehicle connectivity and was selected by Stanford University as one of the promising start-ups in India under the Seed Transformation Programme in 2017, and has close to about 100,000 vehicles in its system. Moreover, the start-up has been working with vehicle manufacturers for close to five years now.

“Our solutions are deployed at leading truck, bus and off-road vehicle manufacturers. Besides this, we are also working with electric vehicle (EV) manufacturers right now,” says Venkat Nathan, Founder and CEO, Nesh LIVE. “We are working towards helping these manufacturers extract, transfer and analyse battery and vehicle data in the cloud. This in turn is the bedrock for any mobility – that bedrock is quality data, and quality data comes with connectivity right at the production line and the latest sensors supporting the extractions. So when a vehicle is born, the sensors are put in right at the time of its birth as an OEM fitment rather than leaving it to the customer to buy it as an aftermarket fitment.”

The three-dimensional way
Nesh LIVE’s specialisation is that it works with manufacturers early on and tries to integrate its products into the manufacturing line. That way, the whole ecosystem benefits from quality data. In order to build intelligent insights on data, connectivity has to have all the dimensions, from vehicle data to user-behaviour to the environment. The start-up attacks the automotive OEMs’ problems in this three-dimensional way. Doing this provides insights not just for the manufacturers but for the entire network – everyone in the chain is allowed to see and access information that they are allowed to see and access.

The rating system
“Today, we collect close to 100 million data points a day. Nesh LIVE also provides rating systems for the vehicle as a feature, based on the data they get,” says Nathan and goes on, “This rating is useful for the fleet owner.”

The rating system is provided for the vehicle and drivers, and now Nesh LIVE will be extending very similar algorithms for battery rating of electric vehicles. There are a number of applications for battery rating; for one, it helps the user understand the health of the battery. And secondly, as these batteries come up for reuse in other sectors, the grading system will help decide their afterlife in the long run. In fact, the vehicle rating system helps people anonymously compare their own vehicles within their own fleet and other fleets as well.

“In summary, we identify what data is needed and work with the automotive manufacturers. We then extract that data and send it to the cloud. Once that data is sent to the cloud, we run a lot of analytics in the cloud and then provide insights to different stakeholders,” Nathan makes clear.

Nesh LIVE’s SaaS solution – from ICEs to EVs
Some aspects of the SaaS feature are common, while some are industry-specific. “For instance, bus manufacturers want to know when the bus shows the pick-up location in advance. While all applications need to be highly accurate, the accuracy requirements in the bus segment are much higher within SaaS,” Nathan tells us and goes on, “However, in case of construction equipment like earth movers, for instance, there is greater importance to monitoring its working hours rather than accuracy of its location since it is mostly restricted to select zones. Hence, there are small variations from segment to segment. Even EVs have some variations that we are addressing right now.”

Elaborating further on this, Nathan says, “The EV industry is very interested in having a lot of analytics on battery, especially the charging and discharging cycles and health of the battery. This in turn impacts the range of the vehicle, and the range of a vehicle is dynamic. The dynamic range prediction needs to take into account, along with the driver behaviour, such as braking and speed, the usage of the vehicle, the environment, the road surface etc.”

“The SaaS offerings include the mobile app for the driver. For example, the driver gets push notifications based on what we see in terms of his/her handling the vehicle, the way he/she drives, the battery being due for service etc. Besides, we also educate and engage the user for best practices of the EV vehicle,” he adds.

From mobile applications to vehicle connectivity solutions
In fact, Nesh LIVE was initially into building mobile applications for the fleet industry when the product was launched in 2015, before venturing into vehicle connectivity solutions. However, the transition wasn’t too difficult as the two fields are very related, Nathan claims. He asserts, “When we started back in 2015, we started with applications on the phone, predominantly focused on the driver dimension. We provided the driver with an app, like Ola or Uber do today, and basically tracked the phone. The industry had just begun to explore other forms of connectivity of tracking a vehicle back then. So what started in 2015 as GPS tracking and reporting has slowly morphed into a huge vehicle intelligence and analytics platform.”

GPS tracking was, in truth, seen as a low-end commodity product back in 2015. “So when we approached large automotive suppliers with our solution, they approached it cautiously,” Nathan tells us and continues, “However, we had to really convince them that while today it is only GPS, tomorrow it will be the black box of the vehicle – like the Wi-Fi of a house – enabling connectivity and becoming the point of access to the internet.”

Therefore, while the transition for the company from a technical perspective wasn’t much, convincing customers to adopt the technology and telling them that it would morph into providing intelligence for the vehicle and improving its efficiency and safety was difficult back then. “However, we saw the perspective change after 2019. Today, the end-user wants intelligent insights,” Nathan explains.

He further adds that Nesh LIVE has also created virtual sensors that direct the load of the vehicle. “We can tell if a vehicle is travelling with or without load by algorithms. This has further increased the utilisation of the vehicle,” he informs.

Reinventing and staying ahead
While the start-up has come a long way since its inception, it has to face competition like any other organisation and industry. Nathan cites that Nesh LIVE has competition at two levels – the IoT level and the transporter level.

“The IoT-level competition is quite generic and not focused on automotive; data is collected from any industrial equipment, is processed and analytics on it is provided. It is very broad-based,” he explains and goes on, “On the other hand, Nesh LIVE is very automotive-niche; we have people with experience in automotives and we have worked with automotive companies for nearly seven years. Therefore, we have built up a lot of domain knowledge that comes in handy to provide advanced analytics.”

“At the transporter level, one will find companies providing good GPS tracking solutions to transporters. These competitors are at the transporter level, meeting their respective needs,” Nathan further explains.

Coming to where Nesh LIVE stands out, Nathan highlights, “Our start-up does not provide just for the transporters. Our USP is that we provide a lot of features for the auto manufacturer, including the dealers and service network of the manufacturer. And all of this is automated as a production line fitment at the manufacturing line. So we try to stay ahead by being domain-focused and being a very holistic end-to-end player for the ecosystem – not just for the transporter.”

But staying ahead of the competition is not enough. Nesh LIVE has also been constantly working on enhancing its SaaS platform. The start-up invests 20-30 percent into new R&D initiatives of SaaS and is continuously improving. In fact, it has customers in Canada and has ongoing trials in Dubai and the US. Moreover, it has already run some trials in Nigeria.

Cater to the automotive ecosystem
Today, it’s all about providing intelligent insights, which has been a pull from the end-users themselves. The end-users want to increase their vehicle utilisation and get more revenue out of it. What’s more important is that the software architecture has to show agility for the vehicle from the very first day. Therefore, SaaS technology will not only improve the safety but also the efficiency and operation of every vehicle, and last but not least, help cater to the automotive ecosystem.

Comments (0)

ADD COMMENT

Link Copied!

Wayve, NVIDIA and Stellantis have announced a joint collaboration alongside the French government at the Assises du Véhicule Autonome to support the deployment of autonomous vehicles in France and across the European Union.

The initiative combines Stellantis’ L4-Ready Platforms with the Wayve AI Driver system, integrating NVIDIA Halos OS on the NVIDIA Hyperion compute and sensor architecture. The collaboration aims to establish an autonomous vehicle value chain in France, spanning silicon development, software integration and vehicle manufacturing.

Local transport partners will engage with trade unions, municipal authorities, and mobility stakeholders to address regulatory alignment, safety requirements, and operational deployment.

Philippe Tabarot, French Minister of Transports, said, "I am pleased to see this collaboration between Wayve, NVIDIA and Stellantis launched at the Autonomous Vehicle Forum in France. France is committed to adapting its regulatory framework to accelerate the development of autonomous vehicles while maintaining strict safety and data sovereignty requirements. By bringing together trade unions, city authorities, and mobility stakeholders, this collaboration embodies the collaborative spirit of the Assises du Véhicule Autonome, as well as the approach required to transition from trials to real-world deployment."

Kaity Fischer, VP Autonomous Mobility & Operations, Wayve, said, "France is leading the way in preparing for autonomous vehicles, and we’re proud to enter this collaboration at such an important moment. By working directly with the French Government and our partners, we can help shape how this technology is deployed safely and responsibly and accelerate its development across the country and entire EU."

Anne Laliron, SVP of Technology Research, Stellantis, said, "This collaboration will help accelerate the delivery of autonomous driving technologies that make mobility safer and more convenient for customers. While its impact is global, France is one of Stellantis’ key centres for engineering and technology development, making it a natural home for advancing the future of AI-powered mobility."

Ali Kani, VP of Automotive, NVIDIA, said, "Bringing safe autonomous mobility to Europe requires deep collaboration across AI, computing and vehicle engineering. NVIDIA Hyperion platform, combined with Wayve’s embodied AI and Stellantis’ automotive expertise, provides a foundation for that ambition. Together with the French Government and local partners, we can help build an ecosystem that brings the benefits of autonomous driving to communities across France and Europe."

Comments (0)

ADD COMMENT

Link Copied!

German luxury carmaker Audi has introduced third-generation digital OLED rear lighting technology on the Q91, marking the production debut of three-dimensionally curved digital OLED panels in the automotive industry.

The lighting system incorporates carrier glass measuring 0.1 millimetres in thickness, allowing a bend radius of up to 200 millimetres to match the vehicle's body contours. The Q91 uses six digital OLED panels housing 512 individual segments, including an outer curved panel with 99 segments.

The curved positioning extends light visibility to wider lateral angles and incorporates warning symbols within the communication light system to alert surrounding traffic to breakdowns, emergency braking or accidents. Up to eight digital light signatures are available across static, active and semi-active display settings.

The vehicle also features digital Matrix LED headlights utilising a 13-millimetre micro-LED module containing 25,600 individual micro-LEDs. The headlight system projects high-resolution lane lighting, orientation paths and dynamic turn signal graphics directly onto the road surface to assist lane centring and indicate directional changes to pedestrians and other vehicles.

Audi first introduced OLED technology on the TT RS in 2016, followed by segmented digital OLEDs on the Q5 in 2020 and second-generation panels on the Q6 e-tron in 2024.

Stefan Berlitz, Head of Lighting Development at AUDI AG, said, "At Audi, light means safety first and foremost – seeing and being seen. Digitalisation opens up entirely new possibilities for further enhancing road safety. The curved digital OLED technology in the Audi Q91 impressively demonstrates this technology’s potential. It combines design freedom, personalization, and communication with the vehicle’s surroundings at a new level. Our vision is to gradually transform light into an intelligent means of communication that makes interaction between the vehicle and its surroundings even safer and more intuitive."

Comments (0)

ADD COMMENT

Link Copied!

European ride-hailing platform Bolt has selected the NVIDIA Alpamayo Stack autonomous driving software to operate its vehicle fleet in Europe, starting with Lucid automobiles.

The deployment commences in Madrid in 2027, with subsequent deployment planned in Germany and France. The initiative supports the integration of at least 25,000 Level 4-ready Lucid vehicles equipped with NVIDIA Hyperion compute and sensor architecture. The program contributes to Bolt's objective of deploying 100,000 autonomous vehicles across Europe and the UNECE region by 2035. The system integrates reasoning artificial intelligence with perception and planning modules alongside NVIDIA Halos safety controls.

Jevgeni Kabanov, President and Head of Autonomous Driving, Bolt, said, “Autonomous driving will change how people move around cities, and Europe should play a major role in how that future is built. Our ambition isn't to bring autonomous driving to just a handful of cities. We want to make autonomous ride-hailing available at scale across Europe, with 100,000 vehicles on our platform by 2035. We're bringing together some of the best technologies in the world to make that possible. Following our first autonomous mobility launch in Luxembourg, our next step with NVIDIA and Lucid is to begin a programme in Madrid in 2027. The Region of Madrid is pioneering a structured framework for commercial autonomous mobility in coordination with national authorities. Germany will also be a priority for what comes next, with cities already setting out clear ambitions for autonomous mobility.”

Rishi Dhall, Vice-President of Automotive, NVIDIA, said, “Robotaxis will scale when every vehicle is built on a common, safety-engineered foundation. NVIDIA Hyperion standardises the compute and sensor architecture across vehicle platforms, while NVIDIA Alpamayo Stack and Halos provide the driving intelligence and safety foundation. Bolt’s European platform, operational experience and work with cities and regulators make it a strong partner to bring autonomous ride-hailing to market at scale in Europe.”

Comments (0)

ADD COMMENT

Link Copied!

French tier 1 supplier Valeo has announced plans to develop and industrialise high-performance compute platforms utilising the NVIDIA Hyperion reference architecture and NVIDIA Halos safety system.

The initiative combines Valeo's vehicle integration capabilities with centralised computing architectures to support software-defined mobility systems. The platform utilises the NVIDIA DRIVE AGX Thor architecture to deliver processing performance and redundancy for Level 4 autonomous driving, commercial trucking and robotaxi applications. The development framework enables automakers to integrate features and deploy autonomous technologies across vehicle models.

Marc Vrecko, Chief Executive Officer, Valeo Brain Division, said, "Our work with NVIDIA marks a significant milestone in our mission to make autonomous driving a safe, scalable reality. By seamlessly integrating NVIDIA’s advanced compute power into our next-generation platforms, we are delivering the flexible, centralised intelligence vehicle manufacturers require to redefine the driving experience and meet the evolving demands of tomorrow’s intelligent vehicles."

Rishi Dhall, Vice-President of Automotive, NVIDIA, said, "Valeo’s expertise in high-performance computing, vehicle integration and automotive-scale industrialisation will help automakers adopt NVIDIA Hyperion and NVIDIA Halos at production scale. Together, NVIDIA and Valeo are providing the AI performance, functional safety and scalability needed to accelerate the development of Level 4 autonomous vehicles and robotaxis."

Comments (0)

ADD COMMENT

Link Copied!