Kia India has announced a strategic partnership with Airtel Business, the B2B arm of Bharti Airtel, for its Kia Connect 2.0 platform, aiming to revolutionise the connected car experience in India. This collaboration focuses on five key pillars: Vehicle Management, AI Voice Command, Convenience, Remote Control, and Safety, Security, and Navigation. Airtel's nationwide communications network will power all connected car variants of Kia with real-time connectivity, enabling uninterrupted transfer of critical data, Airtel Business said on Tuesday.
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Enhancing Connected Car Experience
Airtel will provide a nationwide communications network, ensuring real-time connectivity for all of Kia's connected car variants. The partnership introduces Over-the-Air (OTA) diagnostics, marking a move toward Software-Defined Vehicles (SDVs), where IoT technology is integral to Kia's offerings.
Kia India said, "As part of our 2.0 transition, we are introducing the OTA (Over-the-Air) Kia Connect Diagnostics, unlocking the possibilities of Software-Defined Vehicles where IoT technology becomes fundamental to our offerings. We are excited to partner with Airtel Business whose future-ready solutions will seamlessly integrate with our vehicles, ensuring robust data security and privacy."
"With Airtel's extensive network, we will further enhance the customer experience that Kia is renowned for and deliver global technologies tailored for the Indian consumer. This collaboration will empower Kia vehicle owners with advanced analytics and real-time insights, providing essential metrics," Kia India added.
Airtel Business remarked, "We are thrilled to power the journey of Kia’s connected cars with our future-ready technology solution that offers efficient and effective capabilities. We are committed to playing a significant role in India's digital growth with our cutting-edge integrated IoT Hub that offers customised solutions for the unique IoT requirements of enterprises across 5G, 4G, NB-IoT, 2G and satellite."
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Features of the Airtel IoT Platform
The partnership includes the Airtel IoT Hub, which enables analytics and real-time insights. Airtel states that its advanced IoT solutions for connected vehicles will cover both internal combustion engine (ICE) models and electric vehicles (EVs).
"Airtel will ensure complete data privacy and safety for the connected vehicles while also simplifying and automating operations across all stages of vehicle production and management," the company added.
Key features of the Airtel IoT platform for connected vehicles include:
- Seamless connectivity for both ICE and EV models.
- Enhanced safety features, including SOS emergency calling.
- Custom data plans tailored to vehicle needs.
- Device health monitoring and Firmware Over-the-Air (FOTA) updates.
Additional features of the Airtel IoT platform include data privacy and compliance, support for telematics and infotainment automotive use cases, eSIMs for a connected-at-birth experience (vehicles are connected straight from the factory), and end-to-end support with real-time monitoring.
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Airtel's Market Share in India
Airtel claimed that Airtel Business was the first ICT service provider in the country to connect over 20 million devices through its IoT solutions. Currently, the Airtel IoT platform powers over 33 million IoT devices across the country and caters to around 55 percent of the IoT connectivity market in India.
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Kia's 2.0 transformation strategy aims to disrupt the Indian automotive market, with the recent launch of models like the EV9 and Carnival Limousine showcasing advanced technology.
