Eletrificação e transformação digital no setor automotivo: a relação entre empresas tradicionais e novas entrantes

Abstract

The automotive sector has as its main attribution the production of motorized vehicles and it represents, on the world stage, an important actor in the creation of jobs and Gross Domestic Product (GDP). In the early days of the development of this sector, in the 19th century, the main functionality of an automobile was the transport people, however, with the technological development, vehicles are becoming more and more connected and equipped with functionalities that permit companies to offer services, in addition to the distribution of physical products, diversifying the revenue generation. In addition, concerns about the environment and the intensification of global warming have led the sector to enter a period of great changes starting with the electrification of its products, replacing internal combustion engines with electric or hybrid motorization. In parallel with these new trends, the automotive sector, as well as other industrial sectors, is undergoing a process of financialization where the transition from manufacturing to services is clear, with many types of companies obtaining part of their profits through financial activities, although they are considered non-financial companies, as is the case with GE (General Electric) and GM (General Motors). For this reason, the investigation about the effects of the process of financialization in their operations, in addition to the research about new trends in the sector, is important to understand the directions of this important sector. In this work, electrification and digitalization were the main trends investigated, given their great relevance in the speeches and new developments of consolidated and emerging companies in the automotive sector. Therefore, the objective is to understand how new companies in the automotive sector reconfigure, influence and modify the sector’s traditional environment. This context was explored through documental analysis on recent transformations in the automotive sector, as well as on the company Tesla, whose performance proves to be significant to move the sector, in addition to bibliographic analysis of relevant topics in this process of recent transformation of products in the automotive sector, such as electrification and digitalization. Attention is drawn to Tesla’s role in this circuit, considering it as a significant player for the change processes that were mapped.