Digital knowhow and expertise: Audi’s first Software Development Center in Ingolstadt

Audi

MediaInfo

Corporate Communications

Lisa Niermann

Press Spokesperson for Finance and IT

Phone: [phone]

E-mail:[e-mail]

www.audi-mediacenter.com

Digital knowhow and expertise: Audi's first Software Development Center in Ingolstadt

• Audi's Software Development Center enhances digital knowhow and internal knowledge, leveraging Group synergies in the process
• The goal is to establish IT solutions can be developed in-house and expertise can be safeguarded over the long term
• CIO Frank Loydl: "We are setting new standards in agile software development"

Ingolstadt, Oktober 6, 2020 - Berlin, Wolfsburg, Lisbon and now Ingolstadt. With eight locations, the Group family of Software Development Centers (SDCs) already has a broad base. And now AUDI AG, too, has joined this large network with a base in Ingolstadt. The first Audi SDC ensures the continued expansion of digital knowhow and in-house expertise as well as the long-term safeguarding of development skills.

Audi's Software Development Center has set itself the mission of developing smart, scalable, customer-centric and secure IT solutions in house. In Ingolstadt, a short distance away from the Audi plant, AUDI AG has opened its first SDC in the Volkswagen Group. This location was deliberately chosen so that employees can enjoy a new space conducive to new ways of thinking away from their traditional working environment while still allowing them to maintain close personal contact with the commissioning specialist areas at the Audi plant. To bundle digital knowhow of the AUDI IT and continue along the road of swift and efficient expansion, Audi decided to bring together software developers, UX designers and cloud platform specialists in a single organization at the new location. The proximity and intensive dialog among team members within the SDC mean that solutions can developed quickly and with a whole lot of creative thinking.

"Thanks to the Software Development Center, we are setting new standards in agile software development in our teams and so ensuring faster product development with enhanced quality and a greater value creation depth for the Group," says Frank Loydl, Chief Information Officer of

AUDI AG.

Audi is deploying small teams and agile methods in its day-to-day work in the SDC. To encourage this, the interior design and office equipment at the new location have also been specially aligned with the needs of employees and methodical requirements. To create synergies with the

1/2

Audi

MediaInfo

existing SDCs, the Audi SDC has been seamlessly integrated in the VW Group's network. This not only prevents the duplication of work but also speeds up and enhances the quality of in-house development over the long term. "We are working at the level of the Volkswagen Group with the same technical platforms and in accordance with the same methods and standards," says Thomas Bittighofer, Head of the Software Development Center in Ingolstadt. "This means that we are constantly sharing data and experience and so helping to build new skills all the time." The early fruits of the SDC's efforts have already been successfully implemented in the specialist areas. A couple of examples include a process platform for product marketing and a solution for marketing used cars.

In the future, too, the Software Development Center will be seeking to take on projects of high strategic relevance for Audi. Short development cycles, close collaboration with the different departments and rapid, high-quality results are vital here. A Software Development Center is also being built at Audi's Neckarsulm plant, with the focus here being on digital production and logistics. On the basis of the "digital production platform" (DPP) of the Volkswagen Group, this location will be responsible for developing high-performance IT solutions for the smart, connected factory. The SDC will also be part of an interdisciplinary network of expertise for factory transformation and innovation in the Heilbronn region and will in the future work together with "XL2," a joint venture founded by Audi and Capgemini.

- End -

The Audi Group, with its brands Audi, Ducati and Lamborghini, is one of the most successful manufacturers of automobiles and motorcycles in the premium segment. It is present in more than 100 markets worldwide and produces at 16 locations in 11 countries. 100 percent subsidiaries of AUDI AG include Audi Sport GmbH (Neckarsulm, Germany), Automobili Lamborghini S.p.A. (Sant'Agata Bolognese, Italy), and Ducati Motor Holding S.p.A. (Bologna, Italy).

In 2019, the Audi Group delivered to customers about 1.845 million automobiles of the Audi brand, 8,205 sports cars of the Lamborghini brand and 53,183 motorcycles of the Ducati brand. In the 2019 fiscal year, AUDI AG achieved total revenue of €55.7 billion and an operating profit of €4.5 billion. At present, 90,000 people work for the company all over the world, 60,000 of them in Germany. With new models, innovative mobility offerings and other attractive services, Audi is becoming a provider of sustainable, individual premium mobility.

2/2