Summary
Electric vehicles represent a quantum shift in transportation. A new report entitled "Worldwide Nanotechnology Electric Vehicle Market Shares Strategies, and Forecasts" (Electronics.ca publications) puts the market for electric vehicles at 685 units in 2008 but are anticipated to reach 32.7 million autos shipped by 2015, growing in response to demand for a renewable energy powered vehicle that lowers the total cost of ownership by a significant amount.
As a result feeder industries such as the supply of nanotechnology ‘thin film lithium-ion batteries’ will rise exponentially. What will happen to automotive design will be akin to the shift from horse drawn buggies. Almost every element of the car will be redesigned – an industry wide need for research on the threat and opportunities of this disruption will be required.
More broadly Nanotechnology results obtained in the laboratory are being translated into commercial products. Make no mistake Nano innovations are disruptive and will be the source of the fastest growing industries in the next five years. Another specific example are nano coatings that significantly reduce OEM white goods/kitchen surface scratching by over 50% and reduce surface cleaning by 60%, is this yet an innovation of value? There will be countless nano driven disruptions, to cut through it quantitative data research on adoption patterns will be centralREAD»