New Mercedes-Benz R&D Center Opens in Sunnyvale, California
Ryan Joseph Ramos November 20, 2013
You don’t consistently get to make some of the most technologically advanced automobile designs in the world without the right research and development facilities. As part of the strengthening of Daimler’s international R&D network, the German company has just opened the new Mercedes-Benz Research & Development North America (MBRDNA) HQ and Mercedes-Benz Silicon Valley R&D Center in Sunnyvale, California.
Mercedes-Benz already has an extensive network of partners in the Silicon Valley area since around 20 years ago. Now, the automaker moves from Palo Alto to Sunnyvale, located a few miles away and housing a larger facility to accommodate the automaker’s growing requirements.
Not only is there a new facility in Sunnyvale, but the company foresees a doubling of resources in its new location within ‘the next few years’.
At the moment, we don’t know which projects Mercedes-Benz R&D personnel in the new facility will be working on, although the company did say that future telematics and infotainment systems are part of the agenda in Sunnyvale. This should include more work on the innovative mbrace system and COMAND Online, among others.
Mercedes-Benz has also hinted at future work on making user experience more holistic, in order to provide a simpler and more useful experience for drivers when it comes to their interaction with the car as well as its surroundings.
Work on battery technology as well as fuel cell-equipped models should also be in store for the new R&D facility.
MBRDNA, established back in 1994, is the first automaker with a straightforward presence in Silicon Valley, the premier tech hub in the US. Being able to expand its efforts as far as R&D goes is a big step in the right direction, as the company aims to keep growing its international R&D network. That move is also in line with the overall growth strategy of the company, dubbed “Mercedes-Benz 2020.”
More pics inside and out of the new MBRDNA facility in Sunnyvale below.
