Software-Defined Vehicle Survey 2026 eBook

The 2026 SDV surveyReality Check is a global study conducted by the analyst firm Omdia and sponsored by Sonatus to assess how the automotive industry is progressing in the shift toward software-defined and increasingly AI-driven vehicles. FThe study was first conducted in 2025, it highlights year-over-year shifts in priorities such as predictive maintenance, smart diagnostics, and other emerging applications of AI in automotive. 

The 2026 findings show a clear change in how automakers are using vehicle data to advance AI-defined vehicle capabilities. Instead of focusing on selling data to third parties, OEMs are prioritizing internal data utilization to improve quality, diagnostics, and customer experience. This move toward practical execution represents the most significant shift reflected in the 2026 results. subtitle, “The Great Recalibration” reflects the industry’s shift away from hype and toward practical execution, especially in how OEMs use vehicle data for internal improvement, rather than pursuing external modernization. 

Automakers are recognizing greater value in using vehicle data internally to improve capabilities rather than selling it to third parties. Instead of direct revenue from data sales, OEMs are channeling data into ADAS improvements, product development, diagnostics, and other value-creating applications. 

Predictive maintenance and smart diagnostics lead all non-autonomous AI priorities, cited by 44% of global respondents as the No. 1 value-added feature. A related use case, smart diagnostics, was the most promising non-ADAS use at 34%. 

Predictive maintenance is seen as the strongest driver of customer loyalty and after-sales revenue across global markets. This is because it delivers value by improving vehicle quality, reducing warranty and after-sales costs, and strengthening customer trust through proactive service. 

The industry is moving toward flexible, cloud-native architectures, specifically containersized applications, to support capabilities like predictive maintenance, with respondents who already have deployed these applications increasing 10% since 2025. This shift to containerization enables automakers to overcome legacy integration hurdles and deploy AI-driven solutions more efficiently. 

Sonatus provides AI solutions and software-defined technologies that help OEMs reduce costs, accelerate time-to-market, and improve quality, core needs in the execution phase of SDV development. 

The survey  is based on a sample of 559 automotive professionals across seven major markets (U.S., Canada, UK, Germany, France, Japan, and China) conducted March-April 2026.