Publications
Publications
- March 2023
- HBS Case Collection
Woven Planet - Designing Software for the Car of the Future
By: Gary P. Pisano and Catherine Piner
Abstract
Founded in 2021, Woven Planet Holdings—a subsidiary of Toyota Motor Corporation—was developing Arene, an automotive software platform consisting of an operating system, development and simulation tools, and a cloud-based service that could store and analyze vehicle data. Operating outside of Toyota, CEO Dr. James Kuffner was able to foster the organizational and cultural practices common in the software development world but unusual in the automotive field. This case explores the challenges Kuffner and his team faced as they worked to integrate their platform onto a 2025 Toyota vehicle. Critical questions included: how safe is safe enough for deployment? How should they determine profitability and on what timeline? Working outside of Toyota was one thing, but when the two companies needed to come together, how could Woven Planet maintain their agility while working within the well-established Toyota Production System (TPS)?
Keywords
Citation
Pisano, Gary P., and Catherine Piner. "Woven Planet - Designing Software for the Car of the Future." Harvard Business School Case 623-064, March 2023.