What to expect at the Automotive Computing Conference 2026

The Automotive Computing Conference (ACC) US 2026 will take place on 24 and 25 March 2026 in Detroit, Michigan, bringing together experts from across the automotive value chain to discuss the future of vehicle computing. The conference focuses on the technological foundations of software-defined vehicles, from system architectures and virtualisation to AI-enabled vehicle functions and next-generation silicon.

The New Realities of Automotive Software Development

There are moments in an industry’s evolution when longstanding engineering practices suddenly feel insufficient, even to those who helped define them. Automotive software development is experiencing such a moment today.

Andreas Lifvendahl

As automotive software, hardware and electronics become increasingly intertwined, the ACC has established itself as a platform for in-depth technical and strategic exchange. Rather than concentrating on individual products, the conference addresses system-level challenges that OEMs and suppliers are currently facing.

Focus topics: From virtualisation to AI-enabled vehicle functions

The 2026 edition of the ACC US addresses a broad range of closely connected topics. These include hardware and software trends and architectures, the virtualisation of automotive computing, standardised software platforms, silicon trends and markets, hardware enablement for software-defined vehicles, and AI in vehicle functions.

The agenda reflects the growing need to consider computing as an integrated system rather than a collection of isolated components. From development toolchains and validation strategies to compute platforms and memory architectures, the conference highlights how architectural decisions influence scalability, safety and long-term flexibility.

OEM perspectives: From stack ownership to ADAS architectures

What decision-makers need to know about Rust

As SDVs raise demands for safety and speed, Rust is gaining traction in automotive software. The language promises fewer defects, strong security guarantees and growing relevance for OEM development strategies.

Daniela Hoffmann

A strong OEM presence underscores the relevance of the ACC US 2026. In the opening keynote, Ari Mahpour, Software Systems Engineer at Rivian Volkswagen Group Technologies, sets the tone with his presentation “Own the Stack, Ship the Car”. His talk explores how virtual ECUs are changing development workflows and enabling AI not only to drive vehicles, but to actively shape how they are built.

ADAS and E/E architecture are another key focus. Simon Fürst, Cooperation Manager Automated Driving at BMW Group, discusses how consolidation and centralisation are transforming vehicle architectures and what this means for scalable automated driving functions. From a multi-brand OEM perspective, Daniel Cashen, Automotive Technical Leader at Stellantis, provides insights into how large platform strategies influence technical decision-making across diverse vehicle portfolios.

Virtualisation, software platforms and development workflows

Virtualisation plays a central role throughout the programme. Cedric Armand, Director of Virtualisation at Ford Motor Company, outlines successful virtualisation strategies and explains how they accelerate development cycles while supporting AI/ML integration and edge computing.

Percepio partners with BMW to boost software performance

Percepio and BMW are joining forces to improve real-time software performance in next-generation vehicles. The Swedish software developer provides key insights that support scalability, reliability, and faster development of Software-Defined Vehicles.

Benjamin Müller

From a software platform perspective, Jan Rüdiger, Director Business Solutions Architect at Elektrobit Automotive Americas, addresses the gap between SDV ambitions and real-world implementation, highlighting architectural and organisational challenges in modern vehicle programmes.

Programming languages and toolchains are also part of the discussion. Florian Gilcher, Managing Director of Ferrous Systems, and Pete LeVasseur, Staff Software Engineer at Woven by Toyota, provide practical insights into the use of Rust and Ferrocene in safety-critical automotive environments, drawing on certification projects and real-world deployments.

AI in the vehicle – and in development

Artificial intelligence is another dominant theme at ACC US 2026, both as a vehicle function and as a development enabler. Auston Payyappilly, Director Product Management & Acquisitions at Bosch, examines how high-performance AI can be integrated into existing cockpit architectures and how OEMs can bridge the gap between edge and cloud.

AI-driven development is addressed by Felix Martin, Research Engineer at Tasking, who demonstrates how LLM-based engineering agents are becoming part of embedded software toolchains. Fay Arjomondi, Founder and CEO of Mimik, introduces the concept of a device continuum, showing how agentic AI enables flexible distribution of workloads across vehicle, edge and cloud.

Looking further ahead, Priyanka Mathikshara, CEO of Voltai, discusses how AI agents can design, validate and optimise vehicle electronics, offering a glimpse into future development workflows.

“Chiplet-based designs enable scalability and performance”

As SDV development accelerates worldwide, regional strategies diverge sharply. Hanno Wolff from Synopsys explains how global ecosystems, semiconductor innovation, and early co-design shape the next generation of automotive computing.

Benjamin Müller

Silicon, chiplets and memory as key enablers

Hardware innovation remains a critical foundation for automotive computing. Robert Day, Director Automotive GTM at Arm, addresses the evolving requirements for automotive compute platforms, while Priya Muralidharan, Director Marketing at Infineon, focuses on edge AI, functional safety and the role of safety microcontrollers in L3+ autonomy.

Advanced silicon architectures are explored by Tanuya Rao, Executive Director and Multi-Die Solutions Architect at Synopsys, who presents chiplet design methodologies and packaging flows for high-performance automotive compute. Francois Piednoel, CTO of Athos Silicon, provides an architectural perspective on future SDV processors, while Jim Foresi, Director R&D Semiconductor Center at imec, outlines how open and standardised chiplet architectures could form the basis of a new automotive compute ecosystem.

Memory and AI come together in the presentation by Chris Jacobs, Vice President and General Manager at Micron, who highlights how multimodal AI workloads are pushing memory architectures to an inflection point.

Networking, panels and cross-domain exchange

Beyond individual presentations, the ACC US 2026 places strong emphasis on dialogue and networking. Panel discussions, Q&A sessions and dedicated breaks are designed to encourage exchange between OEMs, suppliers, semiconductor companies and software providers.

A highlight of the first day is the panel on standardised software platforms, moderated by Martin Schleicher (formerly Continental), with panellists from Arm, Bosch and the Eclipse Foundation. The conference concludes with a strong focus on edge AI, cybersecurity and network architectures, featuring speakers from Sonatus, VicOne and Intrepid Control Systems.

Infineon and Lenovo expand SDV computing partnership

Infineon and Lenovo are expanding their collaboration to support high-performance computing platforms for software-defined vehicles. The joint approach targets autonomous driving from Level 2 to Level 4.

Benjamin Müller