Many UK tech startups are relocating to the US, Asia, or MENA (Middle East and North Africa) regions due to better ecosystem support and a greater willingness to share early-stage risks.

Another challenge for automotive startups – and also a motivator – is the rising expectation of modern consumers. They now want their car experiences to be as seamless and advanced as their smartphones. Yet, apart from a few brands like Tesla or Xiaomi, many vehicles still lag behind in features and technology. To address this, automakers are increasingly focusing on the Software-Defined Vehicle (SDV) approach, striving to enhance their vehicles with more advanced and connected capabilities.

Automotive startups are now facing serious challenges in developing SDVs due to limited resources, making growth difficult and turning survival into a matter of life or death for them. SODA slashes costs and increases speed development, which then allows startups to fulfill their mission and achieve their goal of getting a car to market by streamlining the entire process from prototype to full product certification. A fast and cost-effective way to build prototypes is a key for securing investment saving time and budget on testing and launching products, which helps keep afloat until new funding is secured. For instance, SODA V tool is designed to support every stage of automotive engineering, from initial concept to certification for software-defined vehicles. After investing 1.5 years and $6 million into its development, SODA have created a game-changer for the industry.

For automakers, this means that they can develop new software-defined vehicles in less than one year instead of the usual five years and at a cost of $600,000 rather than the standard $40 million. SODA.Auto developed the Tank Turn feature in seven days for its customer, using SODA V tool despite it being estimated by industry experts that a feature like this would typically take seven months to make a prototype.

This efficiency also means automakers will get more revenue, more vehicles will hit the market, prices will drop for consumers, and cars will get Apple-like user experiences.

We’ve already secured $6 million in pre-seed funding and are now entering a new investment round. Our aim is to double our customer base of automotive companies in UK, EU, and US markets within the next year, helping them to develop over 150,000 software-defined vehicles. We’re excited about driving the growth of the software-defined vehicles industry and our company reaching $100 million in revenue by 2027.