Combine car sharing and self-driving technology — probably the two most sigificant automotive innovations of the last decade — and this is what you get.
Say hello to Jaguar Land Rover’s Sayer, a gadget straight out of Tron set to be officially revealed with the new ‘FUTURE-TYPE’ concept at the marque’s London-based Tech Fest later this week.
Named for storied Jaguar Designer Malcolm Sayer, the device will leverage voice-activated AI to act as an in-home and on-the-go driving companion. In order to understand how it works, you must first imagine a future — somewhere around 2040, according to the manufacturer — wherein we rely solely on autonomous, electric and, most importantly, shared vehicles to get around town. Owning a Sayer would also mean joining a JLR on-demand service club: think of it as a private black-car service shared by you and a couple dozen of your neighbors.
So how does it work?
Should you, say, need to get to a meeting two hours from your home by 10 AM tomorrow, you’ll simply book a car from your steering wheel the night beforehand. Come the morning, your Jag will be in the driveway waiting for you. Upon entry, just lock in your Sayer, and the car will reconfigure itself it to your personal preferences (temperature, seat position, drive mode, etc.). Wanna take the wheel for a stretch, just to prove to the kids you can still do it? Say will allow it.
While the concept is still far from reality, it’s a sign that Jaguar Land Rover is doing its part to keep up with the Teslas and Googles of the world. Let’s hope BMW, Audi, Mercedes et al. follow suit.
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