How Formula E’s AI Revolution Is Teaching Road Cars To Manage Energy
How Formula E’s AI Revolution Is Teaching Road Cars To Manage Energy
Publish Date: 2026-06-06 04:30:00
Source Domain: www.forbes.com
The learning from Formula E goes well beyond just the extreme performance of the new GEN4 car.
James Morris
For decades, motorsport’s promise of “race to road” technology transfer has largely centered on hardware. Better engines, improved aerodynamics, more capable brakes, and increasingly sophisticated batteries have all made the journey from racing circuits to production vehicles. But as Formula E prepares to enter its GEN4 era in 2026, the most important technology transfer may not be a physical component at all. Instead, it could be artificial intelligence.
“AI is the biggest thing to happen to our industry since the birth of the Internet,” says Dan Cherowbrier, CTO, Formula E. “We’re going through the same kind of journey. There’s an awful lot of hype about it, but if even 50% of that hype becomes real, it will be game-changing for how we work.” Behind Formula E’s dramatic leap in performance with its GEN4 car lies a growing reliance on AI, predictive analytics, simulation, and software-driven decision making.
The championship’s engineers increasingly believe that future electric vehicles will not simply carry better batteries and motors. They will actively think about energy and decision making in much the same way that a Formula E race team manages a race. Those same technologies are beginning to reshape the wider automotive industry. The future electric vehicle may not owe its efficiency gains to a larger battery pack or more powerful motor. Instead, it may achieve longer range and better performance because it understands how to use energy more intelligently. Formula E is becoming one of the world’s most important proving grounds for that future.
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