Porsche’s Making Its Batteries Better With AI

Porsche has been sharing how it’s using artificial intelligence (AI), recently. AI is still the hottest technology in the world, so it’s no surprise that it and other companies are exploring the uses and talking up those uses to the world. Some companies are using more consumer-facing AI technologies, such as Google Gemini and OpenAI’s ChatGPT, to potentially offer voice controls that aren’t as picky and possibly offering some information on request. Porsche, though, seems to be more interested in vehicle development uses, and the one it’s highlighting now is the ability to improve its battery packs.

Making Battery Packs Better, Both Today And Tomorrow

Where AI is coming in with Porsche’s battery efforts is in data analysis. It’s also not just being used for analyzing batteries in development, but those that are on the road right now. Porsche says that on electric Macans, it has sensors keeping an eye on all sorts of information on the SUVs’ battery packs, down to the individual cells. This information is uploaded to an AI analysis system. The idea is that the system can use information about normal battery operation to spot abnormal behavior by any of the components. Then, it can alert the owner and Porsche if the abnormality is serious enough. Porsche can then potentially have a solution ready for implementation, perhaps either over-the-air or at a dealership, all without the car losing functionality first.

Besides hypothetically helping owners avoid mechanical and electrical issues, Porsche is using AI analysis to help batteries last longer. By accumulating data from test vehicles, and potentially from customer vehicles, the company can get better ideas of what’s happening with its batteries. Combining this information, along with existing information about the chemistry, environmental effects, and more, AI can be used to help find potential trouble spots. It’s all part of the company’s efforts to make upcoming battery technology longer-lasting and better-performing. We’re interested to see if Porsche may be able to apply its learning to existing products. For instance, it might discover a way to charge a vehicle’s batteries in a way that improves longevity over a previous method. It could possibly send out a software update to adjust how the computer decides when and how quickly it pulls power to recharge.

It’s Using AI In Other Areas, Too

Previously, Porsche shared that it’s also using AI in ride and handling development. Engineers have been training AI to understand different sets of data that can correlate to different characteristics, such as softness and responsiveness. It’s trying to add some objectivity to a type of vehicle tuning that can be extremely subjective. However, it seems to be more to help make communication of what different engineers and project managers are looking for much easier. After all, two people can have different definitions of what a “hard” ride can be.