Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. and BMW Group have officially launched Snapdragon Ride Pilot, a next-generation automated driving (AD) system born out of a three-year collaboration. Built on Qualcomm’s Snapdragon Ride chips and co-developed software, this cutting-edge platform is designed with top global safety standards in mind. It supports everything from basic driver-assist features to advanced Level 2+ autonomous driving, including highway and city navigation on autopilot.

The BMW iX3 was the first production car from BMW’s Neue Klasse and the first in the world to feature Snapdragon Ride Pilot. The system has already been validated in over 60 countries, with plans to expand into more than 100 markets by 2026. Importantly, Qualcomm Technologies is now making this solution available to all global automakers and Tier-1 suppliers, opening the door for widespread adoption.

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Snapdragon Ride Pilot’s software is the result of a global team effort, bringing together expertise from around the world. More than 1,400 experts from Germany, the USA, Sweden, Romania, and BMW’s AD Test Center in the Czech Republic worked together to bring this advanced technology to life.

“Our collaboration with BMW’s world-class engineering team has been truly transformative, enabling us to build a world-class system that is now available to bring the safety and comfort benefits of automated driving to consumers across all regions and vehicle tiers,” said Nakul Duggal, Group General Manager, Automotive and Industrial & Embedded IoT, Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. “Together, we’ve created Snapdragon Ride Pilot a revolutionary driver assistance system that prioritizes safety and sets a new standard for the industry.”

Dr. Mihiar Ayoubi, Senior Vice President Development Driving Experience at BMW Group, emphasized the breakthrough: “Together with Qualcomm Technologies, we’ve created a groundbreaking system, which is a significant contribution to the big technological leap we take with our Neue Klasse. Smart, symbiotic and safe is the core of the BMW philosophy when it comes to ADAS our new BMW iX3 will deliver this on an unprecedented level.”

Key Features of Snapdragon Ride AD Software Stack

The software stack combines Qualcomm’s camera-based perception technology with a co-developed drive policy engine, enabling automakers to deliver scalable, flexible, and cost-effective solutions. Major highlights include:

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  • 360-Degree Perception: Advanced camera and radar integration with bird’s-eye-view architecture for lane detection, traffic sign interpretation, parking assistance, and urban navigation.
  • Safety-First Design: Compliance with global standards such as NCAP, FMVSS127, and DCAS, while incorporating ASIL, FuSa, and cybersecurity protocols.
  • Context-Aware Driving: Hybrid AI and rule-based models for predicting and planning vehicle behavior in complex traffic scenarios.
  • OTA Updates & Customization: Automakers can update and adapt features through the Snapdragon Ride SDK, ensuring long-term flexibility.

Driving the Future with BMW iX3

The all-new BMW iX3 is powered by Snapdragon Ride’s advanced chips, delivering 20 times more computing power than before. With high-resolution cameras, radar sensors, precise GNSS localization, and V2X 200 chipset for vehicle-to-everything communication, the system enhances both safety and efficiency.

Capabilities include contextual lane changes, hands-free highway driving, AI-powered parking assistance, and in-cabin monitoring. With unified architecture and advanced safety guardrails, the iX3 positions itself as a “superbrain of automated driving” within BMW’s vision of smart and secure mobility.

As Snapdragon Ride Pilot becomes available globally, Qualcomm Technologies and BMW Group are not just introducing a product they are shaping the future of automated driving with intelligence, safety, and scalability at its core.

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