Tata Technologies and GKN Unveil New e-Mobility Center in Bengaluru

MAHLE Powertrain Test Chamber Development Begins At RDE Centre, Northampton

Tata Technologies, a leading global engineering and product development digital services company,  and GKN Automotive, a global leader in development and supply of driveline systems and ePowertrain technologies, have opened a new software development hub for e-mobility solutions in Bengaluru. The centre aims to be a world-class hub for engineering talent in the automotive industry. It will be working on the latest and next-gen technologies with some of the leading OEMs across the world.

Participants of the virtual launch event

The center will enable the development of end-to-end powertrain software and also development of various components of the vehicles, including for the combustion vehicles. With this partnership, GKN will bring in its IP (Intellectual Property), its technology and its access to a global customer base. Tata Technologies will bring in its skills, capabilities and knowhow to operate such a centre in India.

Work station at the Bangalore centre

Speaking on the opportunities from the growing EV space, Warren Harris, CEO & MD, Tata Technologies, said, “Last year itself, there were 2.3 million electric vehicles sold which represents a penetration rate of 2.4 percent. By 2030, electric vehicles are likely to make up more than 35 percent of all the vehicles sold in the world. This collaboration with GKN Automotive will significantly contribute towards the development of the next generation of electric vehicles that are sustainable and help us achieve a greener world.”

Warren further adds, “The real challenge for electric mobility in India is the prices. Prices are the real driver of consumer sentiments and we need to have the ability to apply frugal innovation or engineering capabilities to the technologies that are being developed in different parts of the world. We have a strong reputation in the EV space, particularly, in terms of lightweighting and vehicle integration. We have strong relations with Chinese OEMs like for the Nio.”

Dr Rainer Link, Vice President Engineering, e-Powertrain, GKN Automotive said, “It brings us immense pleasure to be a part of this software hub. This partnership with Tata gives us access to world-class engineering talents. This is essential for us in our transformation from mechanical to software and electronics. The innovations coming from this tech centre will enable our e-drive technologies to grow further.”

Lab at Bangalore centre

Rainer further adds, “All the global OEMs are making a rapid shift to e-mobility with the government encouraging with incentives and all the legal points over emissions. This new hub would be able to support global automotive manufacturers with future electrification programs.”

Nachiket Paranjpe, Senior Vice President, EU-Sales, Tata Technologies said, “Since we work on a lot of software components, this hub would predominantly deal with gearboxes, battery chargers, inverters and similar others. The skills that are being leveraged at this centre is primarily software development. Many companies have started working with a common software platform called the AUTOSAR. We can implement, configure and test AUTOSAR-compliant software.”

Arun Krishnamurthi, President-Sales, Europe, Tata Technologies, said, “The collaboration combines GKN’s proven expertise in e-drive systems with Tata Technologies’s expertise in the embedded and electrical space. This will place our product engineering capabilities in the embedded space among the European OEMs. It would especially aid in establishing a bigger impression among the German OEMs.”

Pictures from the soft launch of the tech centre in Bengaluru on September 2
Pictures from the soft launch of the tech centre in Bengaluru on September 2

Dr Christoph Gillen, Director, Product Technology, Electrical Systems, GKN Automotive said, “This partnership with Tata Technologies would enable GKN Automotive to advance its products for electrified vehicles, increase efficiencies and become an even more attractive partner for global automotive manufacturers. ”

Today, the centre has 42 engineers and expects to have more than 100 engineers by the end of the year. Commissioned in March 2020, the centre saw a soft launch on September 2 and has been operational even in these COVID-19 pandemic periods. The centre is equipped with various testing capabilities that ensures that the functions are implemented properly and the features that are developed for a particular component are accurate. 


 

Drako Tech Unveils DriveOS With Single-ECUArchitecture

Drako Tech

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.”

dSPACE To Present AI-Driven Test Solutions For SDV At CES 2026

dSPACE

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.

Greaves Cotton Appoints Santosh Singh As Chief Strategy And AI Officer

Santosh Singh

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.

Luminar Sells Photonics Division To Quantum Computing Inc For $110 Million

Luminar

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.