20 years of Digiteq Automotive

Where is Digiteq Automotive going?

We have built up a great reputation in the automotive sector through testing electronic equipment for Škoda Auto. This has given us a good basis for developing new competences and growing further. It has given us an opportunity to transform ourselves into a technology company and to be a key strategic partner for the entire Volkswagen Group.

What will Digiteq Automotive focus on?

We will gradually be developing small and smart products – not just the test equipment and hardware that is part of our corporate heritage, but increasingly also unique software solutions. We want to be the leading expert in our selected technologies and thus an attractive choice for talented specialists who would previously have preferred large IT or software companies.

Why should they choose Digiteq Automotive over Microsoft or Google?

Because cars are turning into computers on wheels and car manufacturers are turning into technology-oriented companies. This is a huge revolution and we are giving people the chance to be right at the heart of it. Here you can work on amazing projects such as computer vision or autonomous driving. Who wouldn’t want that? We are fast, innovative and agile, and we have some really attractive job opportunities.

Digiteq has experienced rapid growth. What was the priority during this period?

To work constantly on the atmosphere in the company. This is not easy to measure, but it is crucial for us. And even though hundreds of new colleagues are joining us, our DNA remains the same – we are a company that welcomes new people, which means that newcomers can fit in quickly. They soon they feel as if they have been with us for years. This has been confirmed by the results of the Atmoskop survey conducted by LMC, where we outperformed even strong domestic brands.

What is behind this?

We promote a culture of trust because we believe that it is not right to tie a firm down with too many rules. In practice, it pays off to show trust in your employees. This helps us to strike a healthy balance between a start-up and an established corporation and to benefit from the advantages of both approaches. We still maintain a small company culture where people learn from each other and thus progress further in their development.

What is the main advantage of Digiteq Automotive?

The fact that we combine automotive and software know-how. Our strength lies in connecting software down to the level of hardware and vehicle components. We have a multitude of skilled people who understand the electrics and electronics in cars, who know a lot about assistance systems and infotainment, and who are also able test all these in a very sophisticated way. There really aren’t many companies like Digiteq Automotive.

Is it possible to adopt agile work principles in the automotive industry?

A lot of people couldn’t imagine it in the past the because it is a sector where planning starts five years before the first car comes off the line. When I joined Digiteq in 2019, projects were governed by the “waterfall model”, a system under which projects are divided into strictly separated individual production phases.

What has changed?

Soon after I joined the company, people started talking about the agile approach. And not just talking. Things got moving – I went through agile training myself and became a Scrum Master. This allows me to apply the agile approach across our four teams. I work in the vehicle voice control testing department – we are responsible for the digital assistant “Laura”, which you know from Škoda Auto vehicles. Agility brings excellent results and rapid development.

What is the future of voice control?

I think it has huge potential. We are already one of the largest teams in Digiteq and we are growing rapidly. There are a lot of skilled people with excellent know-how, which is one of the reasons I love working here. Moreover, thanks to our close cooperation with the CARIAD Group, we are taking on really big projects – not only for Škoda Auto, but also for brands such as Audi and Porsche.

What were the beginnings of Digiteq Automotive?

We were established as a subsidiary of Škoda Auto, designing the electrical and electronic parts of cars. Our advantage was flexibility – when the Škoda Auto development department needed something, they called us up and we had it ready for them within a week. Our role was to provide rapid expert support.

How much has vehicle testing changed?

Cars contain an increasing number of software components, so the number of software tests is also greater. Today they outnumber even the electrical tests. This reflects the transformation of the entire automotive sector. Everything is much more complex and almost all testing is fully automated and software-based. Very few of the electrical tests carried out twenty years ago are still conducted today.

How has Digiteq Automotive changed in 20 years?

When we started, there were five of us in the company. Now we have about 500 employees. People with top know-how have joined us. Our current competencies are at a very high level. We have great resources here in terms of both expertise and personnel.

How has Digiteq Automotive changed over the last 10 years?

When there were just two of us with one project to work on, it was hard to attract new staff. People wanted to go where they could work on interesting projects and where there were older colleagues from whom they could learn and develop. However, we managed to become an attractive employer after we landed successful projects in the ADAS, Computer Vision and AUTOSAR areas and reached a critical size. Today, our team has dozens of experts, great know-how and an excellent reputation. This means that it is quite easy to get sought-after contracts.

In what ways has the company remained the same?

We have never been a company where you just get told what to do from on high. Digiteq has always relied heavily on growth and development from below via technically interesting work. In addition, our teams and our people also come up with interesting innovations and offer them to customers. This wins us contracts and gives us a lot of freedom to bid for projects we like. This is our DNA.

What does the connection with the parent company CARIAD bring?

CARIAD is in charge of software for the Volkswagen Group, integrating all software teams, including us. We have earned their trust, and by growing we are becoming an increasingly important partner for the entire Group. This presents us with huge opportunities for the future.

Has the type of required roles changed in any way?

When I joined the company three and a half years ago, I would have described it as an electrical company. At that time, there was no software department, only a few people were involved in the development of software in the area of assistance systems, and the number of roles there was also low. Today, software is a clear priority for us and we hire dozens of new experts every year.

So what kind of company is Digiteq Automotive now?

Although we continue with the activities we have always pursued and for which we have a stable set of resources, we are now clearly a software company. Thanks to the areas we focus on, we can increasingly compete in the job market with the largest technology companies, including the leading IT players.

What is the response from applicants?

Candidates, especially those who are directly approached by us, are often pleasantly surprised. They like the history of our activities in the automotive sector and they are of course very interested in what we will be working on in the future. We offer the possibility to participate in autonomous driving projects, and this is unique in the Czech Republic. This grabs the attention even of people who are inundated with other job offers.

How have safety systems in cars changed?

Enormously – all the safety systems are incredibly extensive and complex in order to help vehicle occupants survive. We therefore needed to overcome many challenges, and that’s what we did. Today, data is used not from one but from many control units, and this requires enormous computing power. There used to be no online car either, but now you can control your vehicle via a mobile. So the difference is huge.

What is Digiteq’s role?

Originally, we had only two people working on safety and assistance systems, but now we have forty. This reflects how the company has changed and how important this area has become. Thanks to our know-how, we are able to deliver complete packages – from initial designs to aftercare for solutions that are already in series production. We have a lot of work like this in progress we have succeeded in getting many projects and cars on the road. We see them as our “children”.

What makes Digiteq Automotive special?

I enjoy the speed with which we are able to sort out any kind of situation internally. This is not a multinational corporation where getting something approved in another country can take a long time. I value the open communication and the sharing of information and experience. This also earns us great respect from our customers.

In what ways has testing technology changed the most?

The market demands newer and more comprehensive solutions, but at the same time it is seeing dynamic changes. All this points to scalable devices. Whether in the areas of simulation technology, test benches or data acquisition technology. We can satisfy both basic and more demanding user needs by using so-called 3rd and 4th generation “grabbers”.

What other products do you make?

It can be said with just a pinch of exaggeration that we cover the entire ecosystem of the technology needed for our testing: bus and signal simulators, test benches for all platforms, grabbers, loggers and more. Digiteq’s current philosophy is not to limit product development to one department.

What unique orders has Digiteq Automotive had?

Uniqueness can be defined in many ways. On the technical side, for example, we have had the telemetry system for measuring tyre temperature, which was developed for F1 and MotoGP race cars. This also includes our “grabbing” technology, which, thanks to our know-how, also excels in terms of price/performance ratio. As we are not a company primarily focused on the development and supply of serial parts, the infotainment gateway for Bugatti and the gear indicator for the Fabia R5 can be considered unique as serial and homologated parts. In terms of quantity, there is our CANSim handheld simulation device, with more than 2,000 units sold to the Group’s laboratories.