German software giant SAP has announced that it will become an official business performance partner for the Mercedes EQ Formula E Team, which will debut on the electric vehicle racing circuit in the 2019 season.
The deal, the terms of which were not immediately disclosed, will “drive the co-innovation of new technology” SAP said in a release this afternoon.
The company is already working with customers to embed real-time analytics within multiple types of vehicles, while its SAP Vehicles Network connects vehicles to intelligent, automated services for parking, fuelling, navigation and payments.
SAP will be supporting the Mercedes EQ Formula E Team with back-office solutions, with the Mercedes EQ engineers using technologies from the company to help the team monitor their overall performance on the track, the company said.
Mercedes’ W09 electric racing car.
Mercedes engineers may also use additional features and functions from SAP including their Leonardo Technologies – the company’s “innovation platform” which offers digital design support and the ability to integrate machine learning, structured and unstructured data analysis into business processes.
Bernd Leukert, member of the Executive Board of SAP SE, said: “We look forward to integrating SAP technology innovations in the new Mercedes EQ Formula E race car. Mercedes-Benz and SAP both aim to create a more sustainable future for our customers, partners and society with the help of new digital technologies.”
Toto Wolff, Head of Mercedes-Benz Motorsport and Executive Director for the Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 Team added: “Although we are still 18 months away from our first race, this new agreement demonstrates the commercial potential of the series and gives us a strong basis from which to begin our next phase of technical and sporting preparations for the Season 6 entry. This agreement will combine traditional brand value with the use of innovative technologies that will contribute meaningfully to our on-track performance.”
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The deal comes weeks after UK blockchain startup Omnitude also inked a Formula One partnership with Williams Martini Racing.
Enterprise middleware technology provider Omnitude will work with the team to explore how blockchain technology could be implemented into numerous aspects of how a Formula One team operates.
Founder Chris Painter told Computer Business Review: “Over the next few months we will be working with the Williams team to first properly assess their business challenges. This is one of the first blockchain partnerships of this kind in F1, and we are very excited to understand how the technology can be applied, not just to improve operational processes in the business, but also on the racing side, to boost performance on track.”
