Meet the QNX concept team: Jonathan Hacker, software developer

Jonathan Hacker

Last week, we treated you to an interview with Mark Rigley, the concept development team’s director. This week, we meet up with someone who has worked on several of the team’s projects, including the Porsche 911 and Jeep Wrangler. His name is Jonathan Hacker — a wonderful aptronym, if ever there was one.

So tell us, Jon, what do you do on the concept team?
I’m a software developer. I spend much of my time listening to people so I can understand what, exactly, we want to accomplish in a concept system. I then figure out how we can use software to achieve our goal. I also spend quite a bit of my time coding.

What do you like best about being on the concept team?
I like taking a big problem, coming up with a crazy solution that no one had thought of, and turning it into something real.

Has there been a standout moment for you while working on the team?
Yes, when we were trying to get the digital speedometer to work on the Porsche 911. We drove dozens of laps around QNX headquarters while I sat in the passenger seat with my laptop, taking readings off the Porsche’s CAN bus. It was a blast — especially since we got the speedometer to work!

What is your biggest challenge right now? What keeps you up at night?
Working on concept projects is a juggling act. There are always many little pieces of software and hardware drivers being developed at the same time, and everything has to come together seamlessly. I’ve always been more of a programmer than a project manager, so making sure everything stays on track keeps me on my toes.

Who would you like to see seated in a QNX technology concept car or reference vehicle?
This couldn’t happen in real life because he’s a fictional character, but in almost every mockup produced by our designers, Gordon Freeman is phoning the car — you know, the protagonist in the Half-Life video game series. So it would be awesome to see Gordon Freeman sitting in the car. But unless it’s someone in a costume, that’s not going to happen!

What is your dream car?
The Porsche ruined most other cars for me; it really is that amazing. But If I had to pick one, it would be the Audi R8. It’s a fantastic looking car.

Are you excited about the new concept car that we plan to unveil at CES?
Of course — it’s going to rock! We are building some really awesome stuff into this car. People will be impressed.

From out behind the curtain

The first of an interview series with the QNX concept team

Imagine if you went to a Rolling Stones concert and the entire band played behind a curtain. That would be totally weird, right? Well, we realized that much the same scenario was playing out with the QNX concept team. Their work, including the QNX concept car, has appeared in A-list venues like CES and Mobile World Congress, yet the team itself has remained largely behind the curtain. And that’s too bad, since the team members embody the qualities I like best about QNX. Innovation, for example.

So, in the spirit of setting things right, we decided to pull back that curtain and make some introductions. And where better to start than with Mark Rigley, the team’s director.

If I were to describe Mark in one word, I’d choose chutzpah. Or gumption. Or moxie. He is the antithesis of wait-and-see. To spot him in a room, just look for the guy who says, “Let’s do it!” when everyone else is still stuck in “maybe,” “might work,” or “I need to get back to you on that.” And when you think about it, that attitude fits the bill perfectly. Because when your job is to take something like a Porsche 911 (an example of automotive perfection, if ever there was one) and make it even cooler, you’d better have a measure of confidence in yourself — and in your team.

Indeed, if anything shines out from this interview, it is the awe and respect that Mark holds for his team members. (Okay, I’ll admit it. Something else shines brightly: Mark’s enthusiasm for the next QNX technology concept car. Did I mention the team is working on one?)

New SAP video: the connected car means business

I always enjoy a good read on the connected car — a topic that is very near and dear to me. One of the latest articles in particular that excites me is a recent contributed piece for Forbes, “Can Connected Cars Help Change The World?” by Judith Magyar, executive office, product GTM and mobile division at SAP.

Why the excitement? Well, for one, the attention-grabbing headline is backed up by an insightful analysis of the promise of the connected car — even touching on the notion of the connected car as a means of environmental change and the four factors that are essential to this vision becoming reality. What’s more, Magyar uses QNX Software Systems’ very own concept car as an example of how the connected car and its real-world use cases are coming to fruition!

Want to see QNX and SAP’s collaboration in action? Check out this video, which shows how all of this technology would come together in one (very beautiful) vehicle:

Sound "bytes" from CTIA Wireless 2012

Several of my colleagues went to CTIA Wireless this week, and yes, they took the connected Porsche with them. No surprise there, of course: we’ve also taken the car to CES, MWC, BBW, and numerous other events. (Sorry, I’m really into acronyms today.) The Porsche, with its QNX-powered mobile connectivity and HD hands-free audio, seems to impress people no matter where it goes, and the reaction at CTIA was no different. In fact, the folks from Black Enterprise were so stoked, they awarded the car a CTIA Best in Show award. How cool is that?

Here’s a snap of the award, sitting on the car’s dash:



Meanwhile, Boonsri Dickinson of BYTE met up with Andy Gryc to ask him about QNX’s vision and technology for the connected car. Here's a video of their conversation — in the Porsche, of course:



Andy didn't spend all of his time in the passenger seat. Both he and Derek Kuhn also participated in connected car panels moderated by automotive journalist Doug Newcomb. The panels included "Apps in Automotive: The Future of In-Car Content" and "Can We All Just Get Along, for the Consumer's Sake?". From what I've heard, both sessions were taped, and I hope to post a link to the videos next week.
 

Phonedog connects with QNX concept car at BlackBerry World 2012

If you aren't at BlackBerry World this week, you're missing out. For starters, you won't get to see what, in my biased opinion, is the world's coolest car: the QNX-powered and very connected Porsche 911.

But not all is lost. You can still watch this video from Sydney Myers of PhoneDog.com, who caught with up with Mike Shane of QNX for a tour of the car's features — from instant smartphone pairing and off-board navigation to handsfree calling with HD stereo. Check it out:



My favorite part? When the text overlay on the video shouts out "The audio quality was REALLY good." Got that right.

And did I mention? Mike is one of the super-talented people who built the concept car. He's a keeper.
 

Living the Networked Life in New York City

Derek Kuhn

Last week, we demonstrated our latest concept car, built on a Porsche 911 Carrera S, at AT&T’s Living the Networked Life Event in New York City. The car has been on the road since we unveiled it at CES — it even went to Spain for MWC. We ran out of time to ship it to New York, so Mark Rigley, manager of the concept development group at QNX, and I drove it from Ottawa to SoHo. It was my first time driving the Porsche anywhere outside of a ball room, and it turned out to be a great drive.

Mark is super protective of the car, as he’s entitled to be, and he and the team have done a great job putting it together. But wouldn’t you know it? He let me drive and, as I’m pulling off Interstate 81 in Cortland NY, we get rear-ended. No — for real. I pull over, Mark jumps out, and I’m checking the side mirror to open the door safely in traffic but I’m mortified. Turns out that the Porsche’s rear valance is strong like a bull, and we emerge with just a series of scuff marks.

We drove through Binghamton, Scranton, and Poconos to get to the city. Traffic got faster and denser as we entered New Jersey, but Mark, to my surprise, let me drive again! We arrived at the hotel and handed the car off to a professional detailer before it was parked on site.

After setting up the car, we were ready. Soon we were joined by press, analysts, and AT&T partners and executives who all came out to see an important part of the car’s story — the use of AT&T’s WATSON speech engine. The Porsche is a great way to illustrate how helpful WATSON can be in an environment like the car.


Derek (seated in the car) with Mazin Gilbert of AT&T and Jordan Crook of TechCrunch.

The event was a big success and featured a presentation from Krish Prabhu, president and CEO of AT&T Labs Research; it also included demonstrations from AT&T Labs and AT&T Foundry. The demos included a smart door that recognizes you before you reach for your keys, and a smartphone application that performs language translations in real time.

The car will be on the road in coming weeks, including a stop at the CTIA Wireless show in New Orleans, from May 8 to 10. If you're there, be sure to check us out in the Solutions Showcase.
 

Techcrunch interview: Talking with (and about) AT&T's WATSON personal assistant

Yesterday, I shared an Engadget video highlighting how the QNX concept car takes advantage of WATSON, AT&T's cloud-based natural-language speech engine. Here's another video, from Jordan Crook of TechCrunch, in which AT&T's Mazin Gilbert describes what WATSON does and QNX's Derek Kuhn demonstrates how WATSON works.

The entire video is interesting, but jump to the 3:30 mark if you want to see the car. The video provides a very nice view of the QNX-equipped dash, btw.



The Engadget video and the TechCrunch video were both shot yesterday at AT&T's "Living the Networked Life" event in New York.

Find me a Starbucks! QNX concept car showcases power of WATSON speech engine

Yes, you can talk to the QNX concept car and tell it what to do.

Recently, our friends at AT&T invited us to bring the concept car to their "Living the Networked Life" event in New York. We said yes, of course! After all, what could be cooler than riding the streets of Gotham City in a digitally pimped-out Porsche 911?

Kidding aside, the event provided an excellent opportunity to demonstrate how the car takes advantage of WATSON, AT&T's natural-language speech engine. To get an idea of what WATSON can do, check out this video from Terrence O'Brien of Engadget:



For the full Engadget article, click here. And stay tuned for more updates from the Living the Networked Life event.
 

Making of the QNX concept car... honest

We created this video as a backdrop for CES 2012 where we unveiled the latest QNX concept car (a Porsche 911). Good thing, too, as people clearly stated that they would not have believed we did this cool retrofit ourselves without proof.


 

Which QNX concept car would you rather drive?

Paul Leroux

Last year, my QNX colleagues created a concept car out of a Chevy Corvette. This year, they created one out of a Porsche 911 Carrera. Both cars are tricked out with cool QNX-based infotainment systems, though the systems in the Porsche, being newer, are decidedly more sophisticated and forward looking.

But let's ignore the infotainment features for a moment. If you had an opportunity to drive both cars at full throttle, which do you think you'd prefer?

I've yet to drive the Porsche, and I haven't had a chance to red-line either car. So realistically, I couldn't begin to draw a comparison between the two. In any case, the old saw about comparing apples to oranges quickly comes to mind. But for anyone who likes shoot-outs between raw American power and refined European performance, here's a new Motor Trend video that pits a Corvette Grand Sport against a 911 Carrera S. These aren't the exact same models used by QNX, but it's a great head-to-head video nonetheless:



So, tell me, are you a Corvette man (or woman)? Or are you 911 the way? And did the video change your mind any?
 

QNX concept car makes detour at TI headquarters

Guest post by Kroy Zeviar, QNX strategic alliances

My colleague Mark Rigley must feel (justifiably) proud these days. He is, after all, head of the team that created the new QNX concept car, which took home a Best of Show award from 2012 CES.

You'd think that Mark and I would be anxious to get home after a hectic, albeit gratifying week at CES. And indeed, we were. But we made a slight detour and stopped over in Dallas to show off the car to our friends at Texas Instruments.

Everyone loved it. The car, based on a Porsche 911, takes advantage of TI's OMAP4 and wireless connectivity solutions, so folks were naturally excited to see what their technology had helped enable.

Better yet, TI brought in a pro photographer to take these cool pix...



Upwards of 400 folks came out to see the car


Checking out the new head unit and digital cluster


Mark, in the passenger seat, giving one of many demos


Best of CES 2012 winner. Woo-hoo!


This shot is just cool.


And speaking of cool, a huge shoutout to the TI OMAP and
wireless solutions teams for all their great support!
 

Gearing up for CES

I arrived in Las Vegas last night, gearing up for the CES show. I know I must be in Vegas: When I woke up at 4:30 am (my body is stuck in eastern time), there was still a buzz around the hotel — people just do not stop here.

I’m looking forward the show. Our automotive development team has been hard at work on some exciting new technology, and I can hardly wait to show it off.

First, we are demonstrating our new concept car, based on a Porsche Carrera. This thing is loaded with goodies to demonstrate how you can use your smartphone and tablet to improve the driving experience. For instance, the car supports Near Field Communications (NFC) pairing: You simply touch your phone to the car and the two become instantly paired — no more fumbling with unintuitive menus and security codes.


The new concept car features one-touch smartphone pairing, tablet-based rear-seat
entertainment, ultra HD voice technology, and a reconfigurable instrument cluster.

We’re also showing a level of integration beyond a simple voice-dialing list. For instance, you can use your phone’s contact list to direct your navigation system or to automatically contact meeting invitees when your car knows you’ll be late for an appointment. We will also demonstrate our ultra HD voice technology, which provides full stereo sound for handsfree calls — you’d have to hear this to get the real impact. It’s like you're sitting right next to the person on the other end of the call. (I hope this works well in the noisy show floor environment!)

We're also launching the QNX CAR 2 application platform, which will allow automakers to leverage the power of the mobile development community and to keep in-car infotainment software fresh for consumers. We are doing some pretty unique things with HTML5, including the ability to write and package applications for deployment to the car. Another cool feature is the ability to dynamically detect and play media that is added to the system – try doing that with a standard browser!

Just writing this has me looking forward to getting started. See you at 2012 CES!