The announcement of Sony’s $1200 Walkman wasn’t the only highlight of the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas this week. Mercedes-Benz wowed the audience by unveiling the F 015 Luxury in Motion vehicle.
A concept vehicle, the Mercedes-Benz F 015 is a streamlined and luxurious self-driving car that will compete with Google’s own self-driving cars. The F 015 looks sleek and futuristic, and has been designed not just as a car, but as a luxury retreat of sorts. The idea behind the design is that owners will have something so much more than just a vehicle to take them from A to B.
Rather than an effort-inducing experience, going from one destination to another inside the F 015 will be an experience of utmost comfort and relaxation, rather than sitting rigidly all facing forwards, the lounge chairs are all facing into one-another to create a more social vibe. In the words of Dieter Zetsche, head of Mercedes-Benz, it is a “mobile living space”.
And it’s that part of the design which makes it different from any other self-driving car. Because there is no need for a ‘driver’ who has access to pedals and a brake, the car isn’t just an automotive, but rather a cross-over, a hybrid if you like of an automotive and an autonomous technology.
