Software Defined Vehicles
“S-CORE is the blueprint”
VDA and Eclipse Foundation expand SDV software ecosystem
2 min
The Eclipse Foundation and Germany’s automotive industry association VDA are significantly expanding their open-source ecosystem for SDVs. Their S-CORE initiative aims to create a shared software foundation that reduces development effort and shortens time to market.
The Eclipse Foundation and the German Association of the Automotive Industry (VDA) are accelerating the build-up of an open software ecosystem for software-defined vehicles. Eleven renowned OEMs and suppliers signed a memorandum of understanding in June 2025 to collaborate more closely on non-differentiating vehicle software in the coming years. Since then, participation has expanded significantly: the number of formal signatories has grown from eleven to 32, while a total of 52 organisations are now involved in the initiative, according to the project partners.
From the Eclipse Foundation’s perspective, the growing level of engagement reflects a broader global shift towards open innovation in the automotive sector. Industry leaders increasingly recognise that shared, trusted open-source foundations are becoming a prerequisite for developing safe, intelligent and connected vehicles. At the same time, the initiative responds to the rising share of software in vehicles, which is driving up development, integration and long-term maintenance costs across the entire vehicle lifecycle.
S-CORE as a common foundation
At the heart of the initiative is S-CORE, an open software stack that combines operating system components, middleware and essential base functions for software-defined vehicles. The stack is designed to serve as a shared foundation on which carmakers and suppliers can build their own brand-specific applications and vehicle functions. “S-CORE aims to provide a publicly available reference implementation for essential, non-differentiating functions within the software-defined vehicle,” stated Dr Nico Hartmann, CTO at Qorix, who sees it as nothing less than “a blueprint”.
The first public version of Eclipse S-CORE, Release 0.5, was published in November 2025. A production-ready version 1.0 is scheduled for the end of 2026 and is intended to support vehicle programmes expected to reach the market from around 2030 onwards. Project partners estimate that the shared approach could reduce development, integration and maintenance effort by up to 40 per cent, while cutting time to market by as much as 30 per cent.
From the VDA’s point of view, the collaborative development of non-differentiating software allows both manufacturers and suppliers to concentrate on delivering distinctive, customer-oriented experiences, rather than repeatedly reinventing foundational software components.
Growing international participation and structured governance
The ecosystem now brings together companies from across the automotive value chain, including vehicle manufacturers, suppliers and technology providers from the software, semiconductor and cloud sectors. Recent additions include Accenture, AVL, Capgemini, Elektrobit, Infineon, LG Electronics, Qualcomm, Red Hat, Schaeffler and T-Systems. Among vehicle manufacturers, Stellantis and Traton have joined as new signatories, while founding members such as BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Volkswagen, Bosch, ZF and Valeo remain actively involved.
The initiative is also attracting international interest. Discussions with companies in the United States and Japan are ongoing, while Chinese manufacturers have so far not taken part, according to the project organisers. At the same time, both the Eclipse Foundation and the VDA stress that the collaboration operates under established open-source governance rules. Transparent decision-making processes, publicly accessible documentation and clearly defined antitrust safeguards are intended to ensure a strict separation between cooperation and competition.
At a European level, the project is closely aligned with initiatives by the European Commission aimed at strengthening technological sovereignty. Together, these efforts position Eclipse S-CORE as a potential cornerstone for future software-defined vehicle programmes built on open, industry-wide collaboration rather than isolated proprietary stacks.
