The car interior as a third space. At its peak was intertwined with autonomy optimism and the move to EV. We all remember the time that fully autonomous, self-driving, EV robocars were only 10 years away and internal combustion was a thing of the past.

The growth in centre screen size can be linked to this expansion of the third space vehicle interior and technology brands entering the automotive market. When you are using your car to work, live, and relax surely, we should be using as big a screen as possible! Right!?

The industry got carried away with the technology of the future, imagine the possibilities! Think of all those technology laden interiors that we can design. In all the optimism, the day-to-day reality of driving was somewhat forgotten.

There are cultural differences between the EU, China and the US that have a very real effect of how relevant the car as a third space was and is, therefore the amount of screen-based technology needs to be approached within the frame of what is appropriate for the market. However it feels like this subtly has got lost in an arms race of screen real estate with ever more complex use cases.

So we find ourselves in a place where the dominant piece of interior architecture is better used by passengers not drivers and self-driving cars are still a very long way away. We have landed in a hinterland, where we’re making drivers use things that really aren’t that appropriate or a fulfilling way to pilot a vehicle.

Of course, Its very rare that we have time to think about how we got to where we are. The clamour for faster development pushes thinking time to a minimum. In no way is there a need to apportion “blame” for this situation but reflecting on how we got here can ensure we make better choices in the future.

Now buttons have started to make a comeback which I applaud but………………let’s not lurch from one extreme to the other. We should be making HMI choices that are inclusive of both driver and passenger and future proofed.

A mantra that we always use is to design “scalable information” how can we provide context driven controls and information. It’s there when I want it, it’s not intrusive, it’s not always on. Screens that deploy, projecting on surfaces, discreet hidden to lit lighting are the way forward. And they provide more value to the customer while simultaneously making the environment less overwhelming, allowing us to move away from screens that dominate the interior without the customer feeling short changed.