Ford subsidiary Autonomic and Alibaba Cloud sign a memorandum of understanding to launch TMC in China to optimize consumer mobility experience

Shanghai, China, August 14, 2018 – Autonomic, a subsidiary of Ford Smart Mobility LLC, and Alibaba Cloud, a subsidiary of Alibaba, today signed a memorandum of understanding to launch Autonomic’s Connected Vehicle Cloud (TMC) platform in China, the world’s most advanced transportation solution for the connected vehicle sector.

Peter Fleet, Group Vice President and President of Asia Pacific at Ford Motor Company, and Hu Xiaoming, President of Alibaba Cloud, met in Shanghai and witnessed the signing of the memorandum of understanding between the two parties. Gavin Sherry, CEO and co-founder of Autonomic, and Liu Fei, General Manager of Alibaba Cloud Automotive and Smart Mobility Division, signed the memorandum of understanding on behalf of both parties.

From left to right: Alibaba Cloud President Hu Xiaoming, Alibaba Cloud Automotive and Smart Mobility Division General Manager Liu Fei, Autonomic CEO and Co-founder Gavin Sherry, and Ford Motor Company Group Vice President and President of Asia Pacific Peter Fleet

Based on Alibaba Cloud's infrastructure, TMC is an open, secure and efficient software service cloud platform that provides standardized data and application programming interfaces, enabling users to quickly develop software applications and services with greater commercial value, thereby enhancing consumers' in-vehicle connectivity and travel experience, such as optimizing travel routes, intelligently managing fleets, and remotely dispatching autonomous vehicles.

Through this cooperation, the two parties will provide technical support for the transportation ecosystem composed of automobile manufacturers, public transportation operators, large fleet operators, software developers, etc., so as to provide Chinese consumers with more optimized Internet of Vehicles and travel solutions. In addition, the two parties also promised to explore more cooperation opportunities in the field of transportation and travel to jointly build a safe, efficient and sustainable transportation ecosystem.

"TMC is designed to help automakers succeed in the Chinese market and meet the growing demand of Chinese consumers for connected vehicles and innovative travel services," said Gavin Sherry, CEO and co-founder of Autonomic. "Through our partnership with Alibaba Cloud, we will accelerate our business development and strive to become the world's largest provider of connected car solutions, while also driving the development of China's smart city construction and connected car industry."

Alibaba Cloud is one of the top three public cloud service providers in the world. With its technological advantages in artificial intelligence, Alibaba Cloud has laid out its presence in the fields of Internet of Vehicles, automotive operating systems, smart travel, smart cities, etc.

"With the development of modern information technology, there will be more and more combinations of Internet and automobile technologies, and more and more services can be carried by automobiles. Through cooperation with Autonomic, we will be able to provide technical support to more automobile manufacturers and third-party service providers, so as to provide better services to consumers," said Hu Xiaoming, President of Alibaba Cloud.

In February 2018, Ford Smart Mobility LLC officially announced the acquisition of Silicon Valley startup Autonomic, aiming to accelerate innovation and application in the field of smart mobility. Currently, Autonomic has established a Chinese branch in Shanghai to better support TMC's business expansion and efficiently serve local customers.

“The signing of the MOU between Autonomic and Alibaba Cloud also marks the further deepening of Ford and Alibaba’s strategic cooperation in multiple fields, and once again reinforces Ford’s strategic vision to become the most trusted mobility company,” said Peter Fleet, group vice president and president of Ford Asia Pacific. “Based on China, the world’s largest and most dynamic digital market, Ford will work with Alibaba to embrace business opportunities in the digital age and jointly create a beautiful blueprint for future cities.”

Last December, Ford Motor Company and Alibaba Group signed a letter of intent to jointly explore multi-dimensional cooperation in the fields of connected vehicles, smart mobility, cloud computing, artificial intelligence and digital marketing, aiming to bring revolutionary changes to consumers' smart mobility experience and ultimately bring more convenience to their lives.

As a winner of Toutiao's Qingyun Plan and Baijiahao's Bai+ Plan, the 2019 Baidu Digital Author of the Year, the Baijiahao's Most Popular Author in the Technology Field, the 2019 Sogou Technology and Culture Author, and the 2021 Baijiahao Quarterly Influential Creator, he has won many awards, including the 2013 Sohu Best Industry Media Person, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Beijing Third Place, the 2015 Guangmang Experience Award, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Finals Third Place, and the 2018 Baidu Dynamic Annual Powerful Celebrity.