Honda Opens Expanded R&D Facility In Silicon Valley

Honda is making clear steps to increase its commitment to next-generation automotive technology with the opening of its expanded research and development facility in Silicon Valley.

The automaker celebrated the opening of its facility in Mountain View, California, where the company will explore the various technologies that are changing the way that people drive and interact with their vehicles. There is no question that Silicon Valley has become increasingly important to the auto industry, and the opening of Honda’s new facility illustrates this evolution. It is located in the same area as headquarters for companies such as Tesla, Google and Apple, as well as facilities for many automakers including Nissan, Ford, Mercedes, Volkswagen, BMW, General Motors and Toyota.

“All our competitors are touting their operations here, and that is a good thing,” said Honda R&D president Frank Paluch. “It’s the next step in the expansion of what we’ve already done here, and this collaboration and partnership is going to give us new seeds that we can plant today to harvest the technologies of tomorrow. We can’t do it all ourselves, so we’re trying to look more collaboratively.”

Honda’s new R&D hub will be host to Honda’s Xcelerator initiative, which will provide “resources to breakthrough technology innovators,” says the company. It is part of Honda’s effort to “rapidly develop prototypes with the potential to transform the automotive experience.”

Executives at the company stated their belief that the auto industry is on the verge of some transformational changes brought about by the convergence of disparate technologies, such as advanced materials, aerodynamics, graphics processing units, sensor devices, augmented reality and neural networks. “In order to compete and survive, we have to lead this convergence,” said Paluch.

Honda also used the event to introduce the first car in its lineup to feature both Apple’s CarPlay and Android Auto – the newly refreshed, 2016 Accord. It makes sense that the Accord would be chosen as the first model to get the dual interface upgrade, as it has remained one of the most popular family sedans for a long time. The 2016 Accord will also feature Honda Sensing, a suite of safety and driver-assistance technologies, including a collision mitigation braking system, forward collision warning, road departure mitigation, lane departure warning, and more.

The company says that this is just the beginning. Honda officials explain that they’re focused on helping innovators in Silicon Valley to develop future technology under its Xcelerator umbrella. The program provides funding and “Honda mentors” for proof-of-concept prototyping, and for the fortunate ones, an opportunity to pitch new ideas to Honda’s global businesses.