AutomotiveINNOVATIONS Awards

Announcement of the award winners on July 13, 2023 as part of the festive AutomotiveINNOVATIONS award ceremony in Frankfurt

Awards for the most innovative achievements

Innovations have always been the key driver of the automotive industry. But rarely have they been so important and affected, so many areas, at the same time as they do today. The focus has moved beyond electrification and the digitization of production to new partnerships and supply chains, new ecosystems and value creation models. That's why innovative capability is the key indicator of how well automotive manufacturers and suppliers will master the challenges of transformation.

Together with the Center of Automotive Management (CAM), we at PwC are contributing to accompany, shape, promote – and celebrate – the profound change with new concepts and ideas! For this reason, PwC and CAM have been honoring the most innovative achievements in the automotive industry at a festive gala event in Frankfurt am Main since 2012.

This year, we will discuss the importance of future-proof innovation and transformation strategies for the automotive industry live, in advance, with top decision-makers and experts from the industry in our Digital Automotive Talk, the first industry talk show in TV quality, hosted by Markus Lanz (ZDF). 

The Award 2023 at a glance

Most innovative automobile manufacturers

  • Most innovative company: Volkswagen Group
  • Most innovative volume brand: Ford
  • Most innovative premium brand: Mercedes
  • Most innovative model: Mercedes EQE
  • Most innovative premium brand “Autonomous driving and ADAS”: BMW
  • Most innovative volume brand “Autonomous driving and ADAS”: Ford
  • Most innovative premium brand “Connected Car Services”: Audi
  • Most innovative volume brand “Conneted Car Services”: Ford
  • Most innovative premium brand “Electric drives BEV”: Mercedes
  • Most innovative volume brand “Electric drives BEV”: Volkswagen
  • Most innovative premium brand “Interface and connectivity”: Mercedes
  • Most innovative volume brand “Interface and connectivity”: Volkswagen

Most innovative automotive suppliers

  • Most innovative automotive supplier „Drives“: CATL
  • Most innovative automotive supplier “Chassis, body and exterior”: Michelin
  • Most innovative automotive supplier “Automated driving and ADAS”: ZF
  • Most innovative automotive supplier “Interior and interface”: Nvidia

AutomotiveINNOVATIONS in detail

For over ten years, CAM has conducted a study among manufacturers and suppliers to find the most outstanding innovative achievements in the automotive industry. CAM database of innovations in vehicle technology makes it possible to identify future trends among automotive groups.

Since 2012, PwC and CAM have been using this as an opportunity to award prizes to the most innovative achievements in the automotive industry. At a festive gala, the most innovative automobile manufacturers and suppliers of the year are honoured with the AutomotiveINNOVATIONS Awards – traditionally held in Frankfurt am Main.

The creators of the event

Center of Automotive Management

CAM considers itself an independent institute for empirical automotive research and strategic consulting. The institute supports its clients using extensive automotive databases, in particular on innovations in vehicle technology in the automotive industry. With well over 10,000 individually evaluated innovations from automobile manufacturers and automotive suppliers, each updated several times a year, CAM innovation database holds valuable knowledge in all relevant fields of technology. CAM uses sound industry expertise and intimate knowledge of the market to develop individual market research concepts and practice-oriented solutions for its clients in the automotive and mobility sectors.

PwC’s global automotive network

One of PwC’s key goals is building social trust and solving important problems. More than 284,000 employees in 155 countries contribute to these goals, providing high-quality, industry-specific services in auditing, tax consulting and business consulting. ‘PwC’ refers to the PwC network and/or one or more of the legally independent companies in the network. Further details are available at www.pwc.com/structure.

With over 6,500 specialists in more than 50 countries, PwC’s worldwide automotive network is a leading professional services provider for the global automotive industry. Our experts have extensive and in-depth expertise in the automotive, commercial vehicle and capital goods industries – from manufacturers of commercial vehicles and suppliers of systems and components, to industry-specific financial service providers. Our experts combine this industry know-how with extensive knowledge on strategy, operations and digitalisation. They can support you in every area, from evaluating market developments to gauging new business areas and implementing digital transformation.

The study: underpinning the decision

A study based on the innovation database created by the CAM in Bergisch Gladbach serves as the basis for deciding the winners of the AutomotiveINNOVATIONS Awards. Each year, innovations in vehicle technology from global automotive groups are systematically surveyed and assessed according to quantitative and qualitative criteria.

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Expert jury

While we use the CAM’s innovation database to identify the most innovative automobile manufacturers, the most innovative suppliers are selected by a jury of experts. The expert jury draws on the CAM innovation database and the applications from suppliers with their innovations.

Under the chairmanship of the CAM’s Director Dr Stefan Bratzel, the jury for the most innovative automotive supplier prizes includes experienced individuals from industry, science, consulting and specialist media who will contribute their perspectives to the decision-making process.

Prize categories

  • Most Innovative OEM
  • Most Innovative Volume Brand
  • Most Innovative Premium Brand
  • Most Innovative Car Model

Awards will be presented to the most innovative premium and volume brands in the following categories:

  • Electric Drivetrain; Autonomous Driving & ADAS; Interface & Connectivity; Connected Services

Awards will be presented to the most innovative automotive suppliers in the following categories:

  • Powertrain; Chassis, Car Body & Exterior; Autonomous Driving & ADAS; Interior & Interface

AutomotiveINNOVATIONS Awards 2023

We are delighted to be celebrating the award ceremony of the AutomotiveINNOVATIONS Awards on July 13, 2023 in an exclusive atmosphere at a gala dinner at Tower 185 in Frankfurt am Main.

We will start the evening with a welcoming reception and set the first highlight with the Digital Automotive Talk, which will again be moderated by Markus Lanz. We have continued to design the panel discussion with leading representatives of the industry as an interactive format: questions from the audience are welcome and will be answered from the panelists. 

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“We are experiencing a paradigm shift, meaning that innovations are becoming central to the question of survival in the automotive industry. In the current competitive dynamic, nobody can allow themselves to slow down.”

Dr Stefan Bratzel,Director, Center of Automotive Management
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Felix Kuhnert

Felix Kuhnert

Partner, Automotive Leader, PwC Germany

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