Ford Sync

"The iPhone is a fantastic device but it’s a device perfectly tuned for zero miles per hour," says K. Prasad Venkatesh of Ford Motor in a Wall Street Journal essay by Holman W. Jenkins, Jr. (3/17/10). Prasad is the chief of electronic research and advanced engineering at Ford, and this is his way of saying that some of the innovations introduced into automobiles could be distracting to drivers. Of course, Ford takes great care to ensure that bringing one’s digital life into the car doesn’t cause accidents, but the dangers can’t be denied.

"We’ve gone from one [computer] module in the car to 30 in a generation," says Prasad, adding that "the number of potential interactions grows exponentially." For example: "A system that parallel parks the car for you has to interact with the drivetrain, brakes, steering and cameras or other sensors." Ford, meanwhile, is currently advertising Ford Sync, which, among other things, "lets a driver summon up music or hear his text messages without taking his eyes off the road, with more features (navigation, diagnostics, etc.) being added all the time."

Prasad thinks such innovations will render highway billboards irrelevant, as drivers will instead get their pit-stop suggestions from "the cloud." Ford calls this "the American Journey 2.0." Drivers might also receive warnings about dangerous intersections ahead from a social networking site, perhaps citing accidents involving friends. Prasad also sees smaller cars ahead because "small is tech, small is cool." Maybe no seats for other passengers, but plenty of room for "virtual buddies." Fantastic, at any speed.