Audi 2014 Annual Report Download - page 82

STROTBEK : And not all oil reserves are
the same – they aren’t always worth
exploiting. The trick is to fi lter the relevant
information out of the deluge of data,
analyze it precisely, understand it and
draw the right conclusions from it. We
always start by asking ourselves : What
will deliver genuine added value ? We
want to use data to improve not just the
customer experience, for example, but
also product quality and tra c safety in
particular.
Audi delivered more than . million
vehicles in  and already o ers
over  di erent models in countless
confi gurations. So customers have
access to a high degree of individuality
and diversity. Would this even have
been conceivable in such a way prior
to digitization ?
MAYER-SCHÖNBERGER : If we look at
the major economic cycles, the industrial
revolution precipitated mass production
and therefore de-individualization. With
the new digital instruments, we can
now provide a high degree of individuality
while still practicing mass production.
The companies that do so successfully
are the pioneers of this development.
STROTBEK : At our company, we have
reached a level of complexity that
can only be handled with digitization.
In theory, given the range of versions
we are already building, we make no
two cars that are exactly the same over a
period of one year. Meanwhile, we aim
to o er our customers a unique brand
experience of which simplicity is a hall-
mark. Take our Audi Confi gurator, for
example. It covers the entire range of
versions, but it is quick and easy to use.
And customers at the Audi City in Berlin,
London and Beijing can already confi gure
their Audi virtually in full size on what
we call powerwalls. Our next step will be
to introduce such technological solu-
tions at the retail premises of our many
partners worldwide.
Big Data has evolved into a huge
business area. But society doesn’t
always view this development
as purely positive. Many people feel
they have been turned into trans-
parent citizens. Are they wrong to
have such misgivings ?
MAYER-SCHÖNBERGER : People have
a degree of mistrust that in some cases
has been aggravated by scandals. The
important point is that business models
based on Big Data will only work if cus-
tomers have a level of trust that means
they are prepared to give up their data.
People will only do that if there are clear
rules in place.
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