Jaguar Land Rover has announced they are testing a new connected car service which allows drivers to earn cryptocurrency and make payments on the move.
Dubbed “Smart Wallet”, the technology allows owners to earn credits by permitting their vehicle to automatically report useful road condition data to navigation providers and local authorities. Information such as traffic congestion and pothole location could potentially earn drivers rewards such as a coffee or to pay for tolls and parking fees.
Potentially ‘Smart Wallet’ could eliminate the need to search for loose change or sign up for multiple accounts for services.
Using the latest cryptocurrency technology, Jaguar Land Rover has partnered with the IOTA Foundation to assess the feasibility of making and receiving payments. A highlight of the system is that no transaction fee would be charged with transactions also getting faster across the network.
Jaguar Land Rover’s new software engineering base in Shannon, Republic of Ireland, is hosting the trials of the technology. Several vehicles have already been equipped with the tech including the Jaguar F-Pace and Range Rover Velar.
Russell Vickers, Jaguar Land Rover Software Architect, said: "The connected car technologies we are developing will be transformative and truly turn your Jaguar or Land Rover into a third space, in addition to your home or office. In the future an autonomous car could drive itself to a charging station, recharge and pay, while its owner could choose to participate in the sharing economy - earning rewards from sharing useful data such as warning other cars of traffic jams."
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