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BMW To Launch Fully Autonomous And Electric iNext by 2021

Mark it down in your diaries, the day of reckoning for cars as we know it has been set for 2021. BMW has revealed plans for the release of its first completely electric, self-driving and fully-connected iNext vehicle, which is set to be


Mark it down in your diaries, the day of reckoning for cars as we know it has been set for 2021.

BMW has revealed plans for the release of its first completely electric, self-driving and fully-connected iNext vehicle, which is set to be called the i5 when it goes into production.

A new developmental base is to be set up outside of Munich, dedicated to the development of the company's autonomous technology with plans for a total of 2000 employees by its completion.

The German brand has plans to start undertaking real world autonomous road tests in the Munich area from 2017.

BMW isn't going to outsource the creation of its autonomous tech like other companies but will employ a large team of software developers - currently at 600 - to build its own systems.

This all falls under BMW's new Strategy Number One Next which was showcased earlier this year.

The iNext will form the centrepiece of this new strategy along with a target of 500,000 electric car sales annually from 2025.

BMW has well and truly upped the stakes while other car brands such as Jaguar and Mercedes-Benz and tech companies like Uber and Google push ahead with their own driverless car trials.

MORE: BMW News and Reviews

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