KIVI Visit to NXP Headquarters High Tech Campus Eindhoven

Last Friday, we had the opportunity to visit the headquarters of NXP at the High Tech Campus in Eindhoven. Together with a team of highly experienced KIVI members and a few new participants, we were introduced to NXP’s latest innovations.

During the visit, we discussed how almost everyone owns a product containing NXP chips and learned more about the chip manufacturing process.

A particularly interesting topic was NXP’s vision for the future of the automotive industry. In contrast to the traditional approach of using multiple control units connected by cables, NXP aims to centralize all vehicle functions under one main computing platform.

An interesting comparison was made with the mobile phone industry. Just as Apple (originally a computer manufacturer) with their iPhone shocked the market dominator Nokia with the introduction of the smartphone, a similar transition is now occurring in the automotive sector. Tesla treats its vehicles as computers on wheels, while established European car manufacturers are still transitioning from combustion engines to fully electric vehicles. NXP of course wants to join in to help to make the transition to electric and smart vehicles as smooth as possible.

To put those words in to action, a showroom of the latest tech is presented in the headquarters, giving us a good impression of what NXP is capable of.

As a finishing touch, we enjoyed a drink (with bitterballen) while discussing and sharing insights.

A special thanks to Eric Persoon and Rebecca Kossen for organizing this special visit and of course NXP for giving us the opportunity to visit the Showroom and hear their story!