Yesterday, Terzake covered the rise of electric cars. Founder of Duval Union Consulting, Jo Caudron shared his opinion on this hot topic and what he believes the long term impact will really be.

Watch the video (in Dutch), the segment about Electric cars starts at 27:12.

Things are accelerating fast in the automotive industry: For years now, petrol cars are being sold more often than diesel cars. Volvo announced that as of 2019, it will only be selling hybrid or electric cars and Tesla is launching its Model 3 this week.

Model 3 passed all regulatory requirements for production two weeks ahead of schedule. Expecting to complete SN1 on Friday

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) 3 July 2017

However, electric cars are hardly a revolution. The first years of Tesla don’t represent what makes it such a transformative company or car. The first cars were just normal cars with an electric motor. The real revolution will be the self-driving car, which will demand new business models to be designed. It will offer a real solution to our mobility issues of today.

Think about it: A car by itself, electrical or not, is an inefficient product with a low return on investment, which takes up too much space. It’s expensive, too many people have one, it pollutes our environment and most of the time it is standing still, be it in front of your house or in traffic. Aside from the pollution aspect, electric cars solve none of the other issues. Self-driving cars do.

The real revolution will be that self-driving cars will reshape the entire notion of ownership. From every person wanting or needing a car, this will shift to every person looking for a mobility solution. There will no longer be a need to own a car, only the need to use it.

The euphoria about electric cars could quickly turn into a depression once people realize the huge impact this will have on the automotive industry. The industry must redesign its way of doing business. They will no longer be able to sell products to individuals and will have to find ways to sell mobility services instead.

And that is just the beginning, as the impact on the automotive industry will have a snowball effect on other industries as well. What will be the future of public transportation when we will have a self-driving car at our disposal anytime anywhere? What will the impact be on insurance when we no longer need omnium insurance, nor any private car insurance for that matter?

On the bright side, there will be less accidents, which means less damage and less injuries which will have a positive impact on our health industry. And with our hands and minds free while driving, new applications will arise to keep us busy while on route, opening up opportunities for the entertainment and education industries.

Many organisations will need to adapt their strategy to this future, challenging times ahead!