What Will the Automotive Industry Look Like in 2025?

A new study predicts that over the next 15 years, the global automotive industry will undergo the greatest transformation in its history.

In particular, the Automotive Landscape 2025 study, conducted by Roland Berger Strategy Consultants, forecasts six significant automotive trends:

A dramatic shift of production and sales to the Asian markets will take place, and as a result, 300,000 jobs in Europe will be at risk.


Small and low cost cars will gain importance, and cars will lose appeal as status symbols. Mobility ecosystems in major urban areas will lead to demotorization.


Electric vehicles will account for about 10 percent of new vehicle sales by 2025. Hybrids will reach a 40 percent share.


The connectivity of cars will be a key factor in 2025 and beyond. The study predicts that many vehicles will be permanently online, sending and receiving information via the internet.


New business models will rise.


Successful organizations will undergo structural changes and open up to partnerships. Automotive companies will become less centralized and operate more "glo/cally," combining global reach with adaptation to local needs and regulations.

"The industry's center of gravity will shift", Wolfgang Bernhart, Partner at Roland Berger Strategy Consultants and co-author of the study, said. "Core technologies will change, new forms of organizational setup will emerge, employees will have to meet new requirements and new business models will develop."

According to Roland Berger, the key is for companies to remain open and flexible.

"Companies have to face now the opportunities and challenges to make the journey ahead a rewarding one," Bernhart concluded.