- Fully‑autonomous vehicles will require an estimated one billion lines of code – compared to just 145,000 needed to land on the moon in 1969
- Tomorrow’s engineers are already learning to code at school to prepare for self‑driving future and bridge the skills gap
- Land Rover 4x4 In Schools programme is inspiring future talent to offset global STEM skills shortage
- Almost five million more people with specialist digital skills needed globally by 2023
Whitley, UK. 16 April 2019: Tomorrow’s engineers are learning to code self‑driving vehicles of the future today thanks to the unique Land Rover 4x4 in Schools programme.
Self‑driving cars will require an estimated one billion lines of computer code1 – almost 1,000 times more than the 145,000 lines required by NASA to land Apollo 11 on the moon2. To meet the growing need for more coders to deliver these future autonomous and connected vehicles, Jaguar Land Rover is looking to inspire the next generation of software engineers.
The talented teenagers competing in this year’s Land Rover 4x4 In Schools Technology Challenge world finals ‑ a global education enrichment initiative aimed at encouraging young people to take up STEM careers ‑ were able to write 200 lines of code in just 30 minutes, to successfully navigate a scale model Range Rover Evoque around a 5.7‑metre circuit.
We’re in the midst of a digital skills shortage – the UK alone requires more than 1 million software engineers to fill the growing demand for roles requiring a knowledge of coding, software engineering or electronics.
"Digital skills are vital to the economy, which is why the IET is proud to support initiatives like the Land Rover 4x4 In Schools Technology Challenge to ensure we inspire, inform and develop future engineers and encourage diversity across STEM subjects from a young age. If we are to safeguard jobs for the next generation, we must equip the workforce of the future with the skills they will need to engineer a better world.
David Lakin
Head of Education from the IET
As of 2018, there were 23 million software developers worldwide but this population is expected to grow to 27.7 million by 2023†, with World Economic Forum research suggesting 65% of students today will end up working in jobs that don’t currently exist*.
This year, Jaguar Land Rover will launch a new Digital Skills Apprenticeship programme to attract the brightest computer engineers to help code its next‑generation electric, connected and autonomous vehicles and support the factories of the future.
Computer engineering and software skills are more important than ever in the rapidly changing automotive industry, and that will only increase as we see more autonomous, connected and electric vehicles on the roads. The UK will need 1.2 million more people with specialist digital skills by 2022, and as a technology company, it’s our job to help inspire and develop the next generation of technically curious and pioneering digital engineers. The Land Rover 4x4 In Schools Technology Challenge is just one of the ways we are doing this, as well as our new Digital Skills Apprenticeship programme we are launching this year.
Nick Rogers
Executive Director, Product Engineering at Jaguar Land Rover
The Land Rover 4x4 in Schools programme has helped the company reach more than four million young people since 2000. This year 110 students from 14 countries qualified for the world finals held at the University of Warwick, with NewGen Motors team from Greece lifting the trophy following two intensive days of competition.
Coding is high on the agenda across industry and teachers do a fantastic job delivering the curriculum, but schools have competing priorities and are hamstrung by limited budgets and time. The private sector, and programmes like Land Rover 4x4 In Schools, have a real opportunity to bridge the gap between what learners enjoy studying and how that translates into a future career.
Mark Wemyss‑Holden
Former teacher and Curriculum Content Developer
Jaguar Land Rover is a leader in the development of Autonomous, Connected, Electric and Shared (ACES) mobility services and has invested in Global Pioneering Hubs around the world to capitalise on– including Shannon, Republic of Ireland; Budapest, Hungary and Portland, in the United States.
Shannon has an important role to play in realising the company’s vision for autonomous and connected vehicles, but we can not deliver this future without the very best minds ‑ individuals who could write the next chapter for Jaguar Land Rover. It's fantastic to see the company taking such an innovative approach towards investing in the next generation.
John Cormican
General Manager for Vehicle Engineering, Shannon
Further information
*http://reports.weforum.org/future‑of‑jobs‑2016/chapter‑1‑the‑future‑of‑jobs‑and‑skills/
† https://evansdata.com/press/viewRelease.php?pressID=268
2LOC for Apollo Guidance Computer (AGC); Source: computed by ITworld.com
For more information visit www.media.jaguarlandrover.com or contact:
Kate Birkenhead
Senior Communications Officer, Responsible Business
Mobile: +44 7780 494 352
Email: kbirkenh@jaguarlandrover.com
Notes to Editors
About Land Rover 4x4 in Schools Technology Challenge
The Land Rover 4x4 in Schools programme was launched in the UK in 2006 and was launched globally in 2015. The Challenge now operates in 20 countries and to date, 15,000 young people have participated in the programme. The competition inspires many students to pursue STEM careers in the automotive industry including former participants who have joined Jaguar Land Rover as undergraduates and apprentices.
About Jaguar Land Rover
Jaguar Land Rover is the UK’s largest automotive manufacturer, built around two iconic British car brands: Land Rover, the world’s leading manufacturer of premium all‑wheel‑drive vehicles; and Jaguar, one of the world’s premier luxury sports saloon and sports car marques.
At Jaguar Land Rover, we are driven by a desire to deliver class‑leading vehicles, which will provide experiences our customers will love, for life. Our products are in demand around the globe. In 2018 Jaguar Land Rover sold 592,708 vehicles in 128 countries.
We support around 260,000 people through our retailer network, suppliers and local businesses. At heart we are a British company, with two major design and engineering sites, three vehicle manufacturing facilities and an engine manufacturing centre in the UK. We also have plants in China, Brazil, India, Austria and Slovakia.
From 2020 all new Jaguar Land Rover vehicles will offer the option of electrification, giving our customers even more choice. We will introduce a portfolio of electrified products across our model range, embracing fully electric, plug‑in hybrid and mild hybrid vehicles as well as continuing to offer the latest diesel and petrol engines.