BMW China XC Interface
Interaction Design for Smart Systems.

Cities around the world strive to become smarter. Xiong’an was born that way.

Over 1000 smart city pilots have been launched worldwide. China is home to 500 of them (Xiong’an included). Digital transformation of impressive speed and proportions has turned China into the indisputable global leader in digitalization and application of latest technologies. Compared to other markets, the Chinese consumers are younger, more open and much more connected. Naturally, their digital expectations are significantly higher. Luckily, so are ours.

DW x BMW China: Designing the world’s smartest mobile device.

There’s never been more “things” connected to the Internet of Things. Advanced AI, smart data, 5G and cloud connectivity, AR, and head tracking technology have the potential to transform vehicles into mobile devices of superior intelligence and connectivity.

Driven by the increasing demand for more connected and intelligent vehicles, our studio in Shanghai worked together with the R&D center of BMW China in Beijing and a select group of Chinese tech startups to develop a superior digital in-car experience—one that would be able to satisfy the most digitally advanced passengers in the world as they move and connect in some of the world’s smartest cities.

XC Interface: Connecting future vehicles to the world’s smartest cities.

XC acts as the vehicle’s operating system—an intelligent interface that allows passengers to seamlessly connect and interact with the digital and physical world around them while driving or being driven.

Augmented Reality

A full-screen panorama head-up display enhanced with cutting-edge augmented reality enables users to access information or digital services by projecting all the content on the windscreen.
Precise head tracking ensures the content is always displayed in the right position regardless of the viewing perspective.

Intelligent Assistance

In parallel, the AI-based assistant determines the most user-relevant services and content and projects them at the right place and the right time. Passengers can access and interact with them, simply by giving a voice or gesture command.

Smart, Dynamic Content

3D interface elements present personalized driving and journey information in engaging and intuitive ways, while elements of social productivity and facial recognition payments are also seamlessly integrated into the system. All elements are designed to adapt to the context of the driving scenario in order to enhance the overall immersion and safety.

World Internet Conference 2019: Augmenting Future Passenger Experiences

XC Interface was introduced during the 6th WIC in China as a digital immersion experience with the ambition to show visitors how mobility experiences of tomorrow can become not just safer and more efficient, but also more personal and engaging. Conference visitors were presented with the opportunity to interact with an intelligent vehicle that combines a superior in-car experience with seamless integration of passengers’ digital life.

The “XC Interface” is fully inspired and developed in China. It has been designed from the ground up with Chinese customers and the Chinese ecosystem in mind. Consequently, all aspects of the experience were designed to perfectly reflect the use cases and future needs of Chinese consumers, however, the technology behind it remains globally relevant.

Even though XC Interface is still at an exploration stage, it opens the way for the new breed of vehicles that won’t merely move us through the world, but also allow us to connect and interact with it on a deeply immersive level.