The Snapdragon Ride Pilot system, developed over three years by 1,400 specialists across five countries, debuts in BMW's new iX3 electric vehicle with global validation across 60 nations.
05 Sep 2025 | 5499 Views | By Sarthak Mahajan
Qualcomm Technologies and BMW Group have unveiled their collaborative automated driving system, Snapdragon Ride Pilot, marking the culmination of a three-year joint development effort. The system made its debut in the all-new BMW iX3 at IAA Mobility 2025, representing the first production vehicle in BMW's Neue Klasse lineup.
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Qualcomm Technologies and BMW Group have unveiled their collaborative automated driving system, Snapdragon Ride Pilot, marking the culmination of a three-year joint development effort. The system made its debut in the all-new BMW iX3 at IAA Mobility 2025, representing the first production vehicle in BMW's Neue Klasse lineup.
The Snapdragon Ride Pilot system combines Qualcomm's Snapdragon Ride system-on-chips with a jointly developed automated driving software stack. The platform supports various levels of automation, from basic New Car Assessment Program (NCAP) functionality to Level 2+ highway and urban navigation capabilities.
Development involved over 1,400 specialists working across multiple locations including Germany, the United States, Sweden, Romania, and BMW's Automated Driving Test Center in the Czech Republic. The system has been validated for use in more than 60 countries, with expansion planned to over 100 countries by 2026.
The automated driving software stack features a multi-layered architecture designed for scalability and flexibility. The 360-degree perception system utilizes camera-based vision technology for object detection, lane recognition, traffic sign interpretation, and parking assistance. The system employs bird's-eye-view architecture and specialized methods for processing fisheye camera data.
Safety features include compliance with Automotive Safety Integrity Levels (ASIL) and Functional Safety standards, meeting NCAP, FMVSS127, and DCAS regulations. The platform incorporates Safety of the Intended Functionality protocols and multi-layered cybersecurity measures with encryption and threat detection capabilities.
The system balances rule-based and AI-based models for behavior prediction and planning, supported by a data and simulation factory that combines real-world data with synthetic scenarios for enhanced testing and development.
In the BMW iX3, the system enables several advanced features including contextual lane changes triggered by driver cues such as mirror glances or steering inputs, hands-free highway driving on approved road networks, and AI-powered parking assistance with camera-based cabin monitoring.
BMW's central computing system, powered by Snapdragon Ride SoCs, provides 20 times more processing power than previous generations. The vehicle incorporates high-definition cameras with 8-megapixel and 3-megapixel sensors, radar systems for 360-degree coverage, high-definition mapping, and precise GNSS positioning.
The BMW iX3 also features Qualcomm's V2X 200 chipset for vehicle-to-everything communications, enabling the vehicle to communicate with infrastructure, pedestrians, and other road users for enhanced safety beyond traditional sensor capabilities.
Qualcomm Technologies now offers the Snapdragon Ride Pilot system to global automakers and Tier-1 suppliers. The platform supports over-the-air updates and provides customization options through the Snapdragon Ride SDK, allowing manufacturers to tailor solutions across different vehicle segments.
The system utilizes fleet data collection to enable continuous improvements in safety and comfort features throughout the vehicle's operational life, supported by cloud-based data processing systems.
Nakul Duggal, Group General Manager of Automotive and Industrial IoT at Qualcomm Technologies, described the collaboration as "transformative" and highlighted the system's potential to bring automated driving benefits across various vehicle tiers and global markets.
Dr. Mihiar Ayoubi, Senior Vice President of Development Driving Experience at BMW Group, characterized the partnership as contributing to "the big technological leap" represented by the Neue Klasse vehicle platform, emphasizing the system's smart, symbiotic, and safe design philosophy.