A robotic arm in production.

Proven quality.
Thanks to the handcraft of tomorrow.

Children at the BMW Group Junior Campus.

Sharing knowledge for the long term.

BMW i7

Sheer driving pleasure.
Highly innovative parking.

Proven quality.
Thanks to the handcraft of tomorrow.

The future in our sights: The major issues that concern us.

Always staying one step ahead and shaping the mobility of the future is an important part of our company’s philosophy. We therefore work tirelessly to find innovative solutions today for the issues of tomorrow.

Technical aids in production.

New perspectives in production.

The BMW Group is using the opportunities of digitalisation to optimise production processes. The potential realised in this way creates an even more flexible production chain that can meet individual customer wishes.

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Enjoy relaxed parking.

The end of the drive does not signal the end of the experience. The BMW Parking Assistant uses state-of-the-art sensor and camera technology to sense the area around the vehicle. It can steer, drive and brake autonomously on request. With the BMW Maneuver Assistant, the vehicle can execute a pre-recorded maneuvers and in this way take over driving and parking in recurring situations such as a permanently assigned parking space in a car park.

Tractor unit of a 40-ton electric truck.

First electric 40-ton truck.

The BMW Group is deploying an all-electric 40-ton truck in the city, together with its logistics partner, SCHERM Group. The innovative traction vehicle licensed for use on public roads is used for just-in-time material transport over short distances. Thanks to its alternative drive train, the truck is quiet, CO2-neutral and generates virtually no particle pollution for the environment.

Experience the topics of tomorrow.

Creative interaction between development sites is a key success factor. Tour our world of innovation and discover today what this means for the future.

3D development: virtual and mixed reality.

Virtual reality will be an integral part of many developer workplaces in the future, based on a mixed-reality system developed from components used in the gaming industry and now deployed for the first time in the automotive industry by the BMW Group. This will open up entirely new opportunities for developers, including fully simulated city drive-throughs to test the panoramic view of the surroundings.

BMW Labs: Own IFTTT solutions simplify everyday living.

The BMW Labs portal enables the BMW Group to test new ConnectedDrive services with customers during the development stage and obtain their active input. Integration of IFTTT services into BMW vehicles enables users to connect more than 260 services to their car, including messaging and cloud services, but also smart-home functions – for example, automatically switching on outdoor lights when the car approaches the house.

Robots make learning fun.

At BMW Welt, the BMW Group offered young technology enthusiasts between the ages of nine and twelve the chance to bring machines to life. Working with robots, the children learned programming basics. In an educational workshop programme, the young participants also learned about ground-breaking future topics, such as electro-mobility and sustainability.

Logo Open Innovation

BMW Open Innovation.

Always staying one step ahead and shaping the mobility of the future is an important part of our company’s philosophy. We therefore work tirelessly to find innovative solutions today for the issues of tomorrow.
BMW Group Supplierthon

All About Metaverse:
BMW Group Supplierthon.

WE need YOU – and your Metaverse expertise! You will face three use-cases from the fields of Vehicle Readiness, In-Car Experience und Virtual Ecosystem. Are you interested in helping US to merge the physical and digital world? Then APPLY for OUR challenge!

A tradition of exceptional innovations.

The BMW Group has always encouraged innovation. This forward-looking philosophy has enabled and defined a number of important milestones in the company’s history.

The BMW Illa.
1917 The BMW IIIa: the first aircraft engine with aluminium pistons.

Like most other German aircraft engines at that time, the BMW IIIa was designed as a straight-six engine. What was different from most rival products was that it was built for high altitudes.

BMW R 12 and BMW R.
1935 BMW R 12 and BMW R 17 with the world’s first hydraulic front fork.

At the 1935 German Motor Show, BMW not only presented two new motorcycle models, the R 12 and the R 17, but also a worldwide innovation – the world’s first hydraulically-damped telescopic forks.

A creme coloured BMW 328 stands on a country road.
1936 BMW builds the BMW 328, the most successful sports car of the late 1930s.

The BMW 328 set new standards with its innovative lightweight chassis and aluminium cylinder heads. Its streamlined silhouette ensured enhanced aerodynamics and eye-catching appeal.

Diagram showing the world‘s first aluminium V8 engine for series production.
1954 BMW 502, the world’s first aluminium V8 engine for series production.

At the International Geneva Motor Show in early 1954, BMW presented the type 502 with a 2.6-litre, eight-cylinder alloy engine. With 100 horsepower, this model was one of the fastest touring cars on the market.

The beginnings of market research.
1957 Market research established.

To consolidate the company, the Supervisory Board appointed Dr. Heinrich Richter-Brohm Chairman of the Board of Management of BMW AG in 1957. One of his first acts was to establish a market research department, which conducted comprehensive market monitoring in Germany and abroad.

Photo of the BMW Four-Cylinder Building.
1973 BMW Tower: built for communication.

The new BMW head office was designed as a high-rise suspension building with four suspension pillars. Its unique design, construction and structural engineering are still considered innovative forms of civil engineering. The building has since been classified as a listed monument. The BMW Group Plant Leipzig and BMW Welt have continued this tradition of innovative architecture.

A document relating to environmental protection at the BMW Group.
1973/1997 Organisational anchoring and documentation of environmental protection.

BMW AG has always been a pioneer in its industry: In 1973, it became the first company in the automotive sector to appoint an environmental officer. The BMW Group is also the only automotive company to make the top three in the Dow Jones Sustainability Group Index established in 1999 every year for the past 15 years.

The BMW 524td.
1983 The BMW 524td: the first BMW diesel and world’s fastest series-produced diesel sedan.

In 1983, BMW’s first-ever diesel car immediately set the standard. The new six-cylinder engine offered excellent driving performance and very smooth running with good fuel economy. With the world’s fastest series-produced turbo diesel engine, BMW demonstrated in impressive style that signature BMW driving pleasure and diesel technology are not mutually exclusive.

First motorcycle ABS.
1988 World’s first motorcycle ABS debuts in BMW K 100 and K 1.

The first-ever electronically-controlled antilock braking system for series-produced motorcycles was developed in cooperation between BMW, FAG and Hella. When the bike brakes on unexpectedly slippery road surfaces, the front and rear wheels are controlled separately, but in a synchronised manner.

Three-way catalytic convertor in the BMW K 1.
1991 First series-produced three-way catalytic convertor worldwide in the BMW K 1.

The BMW Group demonstrated its leadership once again in 1991 with the BMW K 1. This motorcycle set the new standard with the first regulated three-way catalytic convertor in a series-produced model.

View of the BMW E1, the first fully-fledged electric car of the modern age.
1991 The BMW E1: the first fully-fledged thoroughbred electric car of the modern age.

BMW presented the BMW E1 at the Frankfurt Motor Show back in 1991. This was the first car of the modern age designed from the ground up as an electric vehicle. Its electric engine, built specially for this model car, had an output of 32 kW/45 hp and was located in the rear axle with direct transmission to the rear wheels.

Design sketch of the first fully-variable valve stroke control.
2001 BMW 316ti with the world’s first fully-variable valve-train control.

BMW became the first manufacturer worldwide to introduce a fully-variable valve lift system in the new and innovative VALVETRONIC engine in the BMW 316ti. The new engine delivered a maximum output of 115 hp.

  • 1917
  • 1935
  • 1936
  • 1954
  • 1957
  • 1973
  • 1973/1997
  • 1983
  • 1988
  • 1991
  • 1991
  • 2001