Sundram Fasteners Limited has announced that its Powertrain Components Division has been recognised as Supplier of the Year by General Motors during its 30th Annual Supplier of the Year awards.  

The company said this is the ninth time the Chennai-based auto component major has received the coveted recognition. 

The American automaker has honoured 134 of its suppliers from 16 countries with the Supplier of the Year distinction in 2021. The awards are an acknowledgement of global suppliers that have distinguished themselves by exceeding GM’s requirements, resulting in providing GM customers with innovative technologies and high quality, the company said in a release. 

Arathi Krishna, Managing Director, Sundram Fasteners Limited, said, “We are pleased to receive this prestigious award from General Motors, a global leader in the automobile sector. This recognition is a validation of our commitment to quality, safety, innovation, sustainability and excellence. The fact that we have received this award for the ninth time demonstrates our ability to exceed customer expectations consistently.” 

Krishna added, “The GM award truly epitomises our journey over the years, specifically the efforts in new product development, R&D and technology. This award encourages us to develop technology-backed new products every year. I would like to congratulate my entire team at Sundram Fasteners and all our suppliers who have helped us to get this recognition consistently year on year.” 

Shilpan Amin, Vice President, Global Purchasing and Supply Chain, General Motors, said, “This year’s Supplier of the year event was special not only because it’s the 30th Anniversary of the programme, but it also provided us with the opportunity to recognise our suppliers for persevering through one of the most challenging years the industry has ever faced. The top suppliers showed resilience and reinforced their commitment to pursuing sustainability and innovation. Through our strong relationships and collaboration, GM and our suppliers are posed to build a brighter future for generations to come.”  

Winners of awards were chosen by a global team of GM purchasing, engineering, quality, manufacturing and logistics executives. Parameters for evaluation were Product Purchasing, Global Purchasing and Manufacturing Services, Customer Care and Aftersales and Logistics, the release said.  

Sundram Fasteners supplies key products to GM, including transmission shafts, radiator caps and more, which are seen across prestigious GM brands like Cadillac, GMC and Chevrolet. The company has been a GM vendor for over 25 years and has won the Supplier of the Year award five times in a row from 1996 to 2000, and in 2009, 2019, 2020 and now, in 2021. 

Meanwhile, the company said the Ministry of Heavy Industries (MHA) has approved its application under Component Champion Incentive Scheme of the PLI Scheme. 

The PLI Scheme aims in building a robust supply chain in areas of Advanced Automotive Technology (AAT) components. The eligibility criteria require minimum investment of INR 250 crores over five years with at least INR 100 crores in the initial two years. The company, out of capital expenditure amounting to INR 2,000 crores planned over a period of next five years, has a projected investment of over INR 350 Crores for manufacturing Advanced Automotive Technology (AAT) components like powertrain sub-assemblies for Electric Vehicles (EV) and select Internal Combustion Engine (ICE) vehicles. The company has secured firm orders from Global OEMs for supply of these components under their EV programmes, the release added. 

Krishna said, “The PLI scheme will benefit the sector in multiple ways by increasing localisation and make India an export hub in the global auto supply chain. We are setting aside around INR 350 crores for the
manufacture of advanced automotive technology components for the next five years.” (MT)  

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California-based Drako Tech has announced DriveOS with HyperSafety, an automotive operating system designed for single-Electronic Control Unit (ECU) operation. The platform consolidates vehicle subsystems, including control systems, ADAS and digital cockpit, into one unit to reduce costs and enable over-the-air (OTA) updates.

Launched in 2015 and utilised in Drako GTE and Drako Dragon vehicles, DriveOS supports internal combustion, electric and hybrid propulsion systems.

The HyperSafety system provides real-time performance via a single-ECU architecture. According to Drako Tech, the networking backbone facilitates communication four times faster than multi-ECU Time-Sensitive Networking (TSN) automotive Ethernet.

The architecture employs hardware isolation and redundancy to maintain operation during component failures. By using a reduced code footprint and hardware partitioning, the platform aims to limit attack surfaces for cyber security and streamline validation processes.

Industry Integration

Drako Tech provides development environments that run natively on DriveOS:

• Control Systems: Allows engineers to build vehicle controls from Simulink models.
• Digital Cockpit: A system for instrument clusters, navigation and multimedia.
• ADAS: A software foundation for driver assistance with low-latency control.

The platform addresses the complexity of multi-ECU architectures, which typically require separate units for functions such as seats, doors and thermal management. Drako Tech uses a separation kernel to run safety-critical systems alongside non-critical systems, such as infotainment, on the same ECU.

DriveOS introduces hard real-time capabilities to Linux without requiring kernel changes. This allows developers to use Linux libraries and tools for safety-critical systems.

Key features include:

• Performance: 108-microsecond end-to-end performance compared to 514 microseconds for TSN Ethernet.
• Consolidation: The ability to move functions onto a single PC architecture to reduce hardware mass and complexity.
• Redundancy: Hardware-backed isolation ensures faults in one subsystem do not affect driving functions.
• Cloud Integration: Real-time fleet management and diagnostics without creating access paths to control systems.

Dean Drako, CEO, Drako Tech, said, “Nearly half of the cost of new vehicles is tied up in software and electronics. Drako Tech now offers all OEMs worldwide – regardless of size or influence – a definitive leap in their ability to deliver exceptionally safe, connected, AI-enhanced vehicles, with massive cost advantages. We are the first to achieve the ultimate goal – a single-ECU, hard real-time operating system and unified electronics architecture with mixed criticality – while providing OEMs a flexible deployment path.”

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German technology company dSPACE is set to showcase end-to-end test solutions at CES 2026 to assist vehicle manufacturers with the development of software-defined vehicles (SDV).

The company will present a validation portfolio featuring AI-supported software-in-the-loop (SIL) and hardware-in-the-loop (HIL) solutions.

It is exploring how generative and agentic AI technologies can support SIL testing and enable CI/CD pipelines for validation. An exhibit will demonstrate a Visual Studio Code and GitHub Copilot solution for the generation of virtual ECUs for SIL tests.

To meet the requirements of short-cycle development, dSPACE is demonstrating a CI/CT concept presenting a cloud-native validation approach. This includes a GitLab pipeline integrated with VEOS, the dSPACE SIL test software, and SCALEXIO, the HIL test platform.

dSPACE is also presenting a HIL Farm Management Demo designed to increase test efficiency. This displays the availability and utilisation of HIL systems and potential errors to reduce system downtimes and improve the use of test resources.

The technology company will use its test solutions for battery charging and battery management systems to demonstrate end-to-end SIL/HIL validation. Efficiency is increased by reusing test cases, simulation models, bus configurations and user interfaces across both methods. This allows for the demonstration of functions, including conformance tests, with the same layouts and cases.

The company is introducing DARTS ARROW, a radar solution for functional testing of sensors. Developed for end-of-line tests and periodic technical inspections, it validates safety systems such as emergency braking and lane departure warnings by simulating traffic scenarios to detect sensor errors.

For security, dSPACE will present HydraVision, a cybersecurity test framework. Using test case templates, it allows for the integration of cybersecurity tests into the development process to identify and mitigate weak points.

Additionally, the new SCALEXIO Essential system expands the SCALEXIO real-time platform. It is designed for the validation of edge ECUs for mechatronic applications in the automotive, agricultural, and construction machinery sectors. The system includes a software package and is intended as a cost-efficient entry point for HIL testing.

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Greaves Cotton has appointed Santosh Singh as Chief Strategy and AI Officer. He will be based in Mumbai and will lead strategy, transformation, AI-led enterprise capability building and business excellence for the Greaves Cotton Group.

Singh comes with over two decades of experience in strategy, business excellence, innovation, and AI-led enterprise transformation. He joins Greaves Cotton from Tata Technologies (TTL), where he served as Global Head – Marketing and Business Excellence. During his tenure there, he co-led the enterprise GenAI roadmap and developed use cases focused on customer engagement and productivity.

His primary mandate is to drive the Greaves.NEXT strategy, the company’s roadmap for growth across the energy, mobility and industrial solutions sectors.

In his new role, Singh will focus on accelerating growth for Greaves Technologies (GTL), developing an enterprise-wide AI roadmap, and establishing partnerships with hyperscalers and AI labs.

Parag Satpute, Managing Director & Group CEO, Greaves Cotton, said, “We are pleased to welcome Santosh to the leadership team. His extensive expertise in strategy, digital transformation, and AI will play a significant role in shaping Greaves’ next phase of growth. His global experience will further strengthen our innovation roadmap and support our long-term business priorities.”

Singh will also work across business units to incubate and scale growth vectors and lead business excellence initiatives.

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Luminar Technologies, Inc., a global technology company advancing safety, security and autonomy across various sectors, has announced it has agreed to sell its wholly owned subsidiary, Luminar Semiconductor, Inc. (LSI), to Quantum Computing Inc. (QCi) for USD 110 million in an all-cash transaction.

QCi is an integrated photonics and quantum optics technology company focused on photonics-driven technologies and sensing applications. LSI's innovation platform and engineering depth align with QCi’s strategic priorities in optical systems, chip-scale innovation and photonic architectures. The acquisition is expected to position LSI to grow and capitalise on the demand for photonics solutions.

Paul Ricci, CEO, Luminar, said, "We are pleased to partner with QCi as they continue to accelerate their photonics roadmap. QCi’s focus on photonics-driven technologies provides an aligned platform for LSI to expand its customer base, accelerate growth opportunities, and invest in markets where long-term demand for high-reliability optical systems is increasing. We are incredibly proud of the LSI team for the progress they have made to reach this milestone, and we are excited for the opportunities ahead for LSI under QCi’s ownership.”

Yuping Huang, CEO, Quantum Computing Inc, said, "I’m excited about the opportunity to partner with the exceptional team and valued customers of LSI. There is clear strategic alignment and shared vision between our organizations, creating strong momentum from day one. Following the closing, we will move quickly to invest in and scale LSI’s existing business, while bringing our teams together to accelerate our quantum photonics roadmap. This is a powerful combination, and I’m energized by what we will achieve together.”

In a separate announcement, Luminar announced that it has initiated voluntary chapter 11 cases in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas. LSI is not a debtor in the chapter 11 cases and is operating in the ordinary course. Because LSI is a subsidiary of Luminar, the transaction will require the approval of the bankruptcy court via a Section 363 sale process, which the parties expect to receive by the end of January 2026, subject to closing conditions.

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