After 70 years in Frankfurt am Main, the IAA motor show will take place for the first time in the BMW Group’s home city of Munich. Over the six days from 7 – 12 September 2021, exhibitors will showcase their latest innovations and discuss the mobility of the future with trade professionals and members of the public. The main topics of the IAA MOBILITY 2021 will be circular economy, sustainability and urban mobility.
The IAA is looking to strike up dialogue with visitors at various locations in the Bavarian regional capital – both the traditional exhibition halls and the Open Space made up of Munich’s most attractive city squares. Visitors who can’t be there in person can live-stream the IAA or catch up with events using recorded coverage.
With its Open Space stage for new mobility concepts, the IAA will create an easily accessible format for visitors and take the personal mobility of the future to where it will take place – in the heart of the city. On city squares in the centre of Munich, such as Marienplatz, Odeonsplatz or Max-Joseph-Platz, visitors will be able to explore the latest vehicles and innovations from well-known carmakers, and get involved in live discussions and an extensive entertainment and cultural programme.
The BMW Group will be the largest exhibitor at the IAA and will welcome visitors to the halls at the exhibition grounds, to BMW’s “four-cylinder building” headquarters, BMW Welt and the BMW Museum, and to the BMW Hubs exploring the themes of sustainability and circular economy at Max-Josef-Platz in front of the Bavarian State Opera.
“The IAA is exploring the challenges of mobility in the future and offers an important forum for the ideas and concepts that carmakers are coming up with,” says Jens Thiemer, Senior Vice President Customer and Brand BMW. “BMW wants to be part of the discussion and is keen to actively offer solutions. To this end, we are using the IAA to give insights into our visions of increased sustainability, a coherently devised circular economy and urban mobility. We are inviting show attendees to take part in an open discussion – in person at the BMW Hubs in Munich and digitally around the world.”
“Climate protection and personal mobility are not a contradiction in terms,” emphasises Maximilian Schöberl, General Representative of BMW AG and Head of Group Communications and Politics at the BMW Group. “Our company is using new technologies, innovations and our cutting-edge vehicles to meet the demands of society for greater sustainability – without taking personal mobility away from people.”
Open Space: a forum for information and discussion
The new Open Space event concept sees the IAA branching out beyond the show halls for the first time and opening up to a wider audience. Across a network of hip, modern Labs in Munich, exhibitors will discuss future mobility with members of the public. The BMW Group is seeking to hold an open discussion with trade professionals and the public at two locations in the city.
BMW Sustainability Lab
The BMW Group has set itself the twin goals of cutting CO2 emissions from production by 80 per cent up to 2030 and bringing a total of around ten million fully electric vehicles onto the roads over the next ten years or so. In addition, the aim is to reduce CO2 emissions per vehicle over the course of their lifecycle by at least a third. The BMW Group is also committed to putting in place the most sustainable supply chain in the whole of the automotive industry.
How these aims can be achieved is the focus of the BMW Sustainability Lab. The spotlight here extends beyond the development of locally emission-free vehicles; the BMW Group is taking a holistic approach to sustainability, and that means also addressing social sustainability, materials procurement, supply chains and social responsibility when it comes to both the community as a whole and its employees.
“As a premium manufacturer, we want to be a leader in sustainability,” explains Maximilian Schöberl, referencing the integrated BMW Group Report, which makes the company’s goals transparent to all. “With our focus on sustainability, we are helping the environment and meeting our social responsibility. Premium will in future be viewed in terms of sustainability and responsible action – and these two aspects will be inextricably linked at the BMW Group.”
At the BMW Sustainability Lab on Max-Joseph-Platz, new technologies and innovations developed to increase the sustainability of mobility in the future will be revealed and discussed.
Overarching sustainability themes will be presented in an emotionally engaging way with the help of robots moving up and down a runway (the Sustainability Catwalk) and avatars in various video clips.
The robots are interactive. Visitors can feed them tokens to access information on areas such as electric mobility and circular economy. The robot projects its answers onto an LED screen.
The RE: BMW Circular Lab – Re:think, Re:use, Re:duce and Re:cycle.
The IAA serves as a laboratory for future mobility, and here the BMW Group will play a key part with its sustainability-oriented approach across the board. The RE: BMW Circular Lab will explore this subject area in greater depth. The goal: to find solutions for a new era. The method: collaborative. The direction: circular.
The RE: BMW Circular Lab is a hybrid experience and communications platform focusing on circular design and circular economy. Its mission is to create awareness, understanding and engagement, and to take the public with us on the journey to a circular economy. Innovative ideas and new visions take centre stage here.
“The aim of BMW is to reconcile economic interests with the natural ecosystem,” says Jens Thiemer. “We will achieve this through a new way of thinking, through reuse and by using fewer and more recyclable materials.” A circular economy will help BMW to achieve an even greater degree of sustainability in the future.”
At the RE: BMW Circular Lab, the BMW Group is inviting visitors to the IAA to join the company on a journey to explore and shape the future together according to the basic principles of circular design – “Re:think, Re:use, Re:duce and Re:cycle”. A series of workshops will give participants the chance to experience circular economy and circular design at close quarters: how can parts and materials be selected and combined to good effect according to the principles of circular design? Here, “circular heroes” will give users the opportunity to familiarise themselves with the principles of circular design in a light-hearted, creative but still content-centric way.
Summit
The area of the Munich exhibition grounds set aside for carmakers to unveil new vehicles and innovations is called the Summit. The BMW Group is represented here by a number of different Hubs.
BMW Hub
Here, visitors can experience the two new BMW electric vehicles – the i4 and iX – in person for the first time. The i4 is a fully electric gran coupé. Equipped with BMW eDrive technology, the four-door model has a range of up to 590 kilometres (BMW i4 eDrive40*: electric power consumption: 20-16 kWh/100 km (WLTP); CO2 emissions: 0 g/km. *Estimated figures, not yet officially confirmed.)
The new BMW iX is the product of a vision. It is purpose-built for electric mobility and can achieve a range of up to 630 kilometres with its efficient all-wheel drive system (BMW iX xDrive50*: electric power consumption: 23.0-19.8 kWh/100 km (WLTP); CO2 emissions: 0 g/km. *Estimated figures, not yet officially confirmed.)
Like the i4, the iX is also due to come onto the market in November this year. The IAA gives visitors their first chance to explore the two electric vehicles in person.
The BMW Hub also focuses on the further development of vehicles powered by a hydrogen fuel-cell drive system. The BMW Group is piloting the second generation of this drive system type with the BMW i Hydrogen NEXT. This all-electric vehicle – which is currently undergoing testing in everyday conditions – uses hydrogen as an energy source, converting it into power in a fuel cell. At the IAA, the vehicle (based on the BMW X5) will be on show at the BMW Hub and BMW Welt, and in action as a shuttle in the Blue Lane connecting the show locations.
BMW Motorrad: an established component of the urban mobility concept.
As well as the two new electric BMW models, visitors to the company’s stand will also find the latest highlights from BMW Motorrad. These play an established role in the BMW Group’s approach to developing innovative mobility solutions in the future.
BMW Motorrad will have a total of three pioneering models on display at this year’s IAA. These include the BMW CE 04 electric scooter with its completely re-thought design. The CE 04 celebrated its world premiere on 7 July 2021, and the IAA will now give the wider public the chance to view and come into contact with it.
In addition to the emission-free BMW CE 04 scooter, BMW Motorrad is also unveiling two other exciting concept studies at the IAA. These fully electric mobility concepts for the future have been developed specifically for use in urban spaces and to meet the preferences and requirements of the people who live there.
MINI HUB
The main attraction of the MINI HUB at the IAA is the MINI Urbanaut, an innovative vision of space for future mobility. First presented at #NEXTGen 2020, the Urbanaut will appear at the MINI HUB in the Open Space in model form and so give visitors their first physical experience of the car. The signature MINI characteristics are transported into the future of mobility in distinctively re-interpreted form. The MINI Vision Urbanaut epitomises the “Clever Use of Space” and provides an answer to the needs of future cities and lifestyles.
The electrically powered MINI Vision Urbanaut offers the user a host of MINI moments: “Chill” gives them a kind of retreat and urban oasis; “Wanderlust” provides a road-trip companion; and “Vibe” creates a meeting place for friends and family.
To this end, the interior has been completely reimagined and given an extremely warm and cosy ambience through the use of sustainable materials such as cork for the flooring and steering wheel and recycled textiles for the seats. The reduction in the number of component parts included and the lack of leather and chrome underscore the Vision’s focus on sustainability.
Visitors to the Open Space can sample the highlights of the MINI Vision Urbanaut at close quarters. Among them are the rotating driver’s seat, a dashboard that lowers and can turn into a daybed, and a steering wheel that extends when the relevant MINI moment is initiated. Another impressive feature is the opening/closing functionality of the windscreen, which combines with the daybed to create a “Street Balcony”.
BMW Startup Garage Hub
Visitors can get up to speed on the BMW Startup Garage at the BMW Startup Garage Hub. An exhibition showcases a selection of innovative startups which are now part of the BMW Startup Garage scheme and already play a major role in increasing sustainability.
A live pitch event – one of the highlights of the programme – will take place on 9 September. This one-hour show will see innovative young companies from around the world presenting their standout technologies in the area of sustainability.
The startups were selected and assessed as part of the Open Call 360° Sustainability Challenge. The finalists are given access to the BMW Startup Garage’s venture client programme, opening up the opportunity for a long-term supplier relationship.
The BMW Group launched the BMW Startup Garage as a venture client unit in 2015. Since then, more than 100 young technology companies have passed through the programme, with investment volumes exceeding 2.8 billion US dollars.
The aim of the BMW Startup Garage is to provide early access to new technologies and innovations focusing on future mobility. Recently founded companies worldwide can sign up to take part in the programme at the BMW Startup Garage site www.bmwstartupgarage.com.
BMW “four-cylinder” building and BMW Welt
Other go-to locations for IAA visitors this year include the illuminated BMW “four-cylinder” building and nearby BMW Welt and BMW Museum.
The futuristic exhibition, experience, and event space of BMW Welt will provide the largest showroom at the IAA. Here at the BMW Group’s experience world, visitors can admire most of the current models from the BMW, MINI, Rolls-Royce and BMW Motorrad brands.
A new exhibition on sustainability at the BMW Museum is opening for the IAA. Covering a 1,000-square-metre area, it will give visitors the chance to learn more about electric vehicles and how a coherent circular economy approach can reduce CO2 emissions from production. The exhibition will stay open beyond the IAA and run for 17 months in total.
Blue Lane: low-emission link between the IAA venues
Visitors can reach the exhibitors’ various event locations via the Blue Lane. Just under 12 kilometres in length, this route through the centre of Munich links all the BMW locations, from the IAA show halls with the various BMW Hubs, to BMW Welt and the Open Space areas including BMW’s Sustainability Lab and RE: BMW Circular Lab located at the Bavarian State Opera.
In the test area for electric, hybrid and hydrogen-powered vehicles, visitors can experience for themselves trailblazing innovations focusing on mobility and emission-free driving. The Blue Lane links car traffic and local public transport.
The BMW Group digital world at the IAA
Mobility fans unable to attend the IAA in person can follow the world’s largest motor show live via IAA Mobility Virtual or stream the recorded coverage later on. The BMW Group has set up a dedicated digital channel for this service which will allow it to guide online visitors around all the BMW locations and themes.
People attending BMW’s Summit events digitally will witness the presentation of the latest vehicles, can find out more about sustainability and circular economy in the Hubs and Labs, attend presentations and discussions on the future of mobility and learn more about innovations. The BMW Group will have an online presence across the IAA and invite attendees to participate interactively. Visitors can log on as an avatar and explore the BMW Group’s digital world with total freedom.
