Technological Change Through Digitalization in the US and German Automotive Industries

Jonas Horn

The automotive industry is undergoing a profound transformation: the shift from combustion engines to electric vehicles coupled with digital innovations in autonomous driving and infotainment is turning cars into software-driven products. This transformation reshapes jobs, industrial structures, and value chains. This dissertation project studies the implications of digitalization for the industry’s core product – the car – by seeking political-economic explanations for how increasing reliance on software is materializing. Adopting a firm-level perspective, it focuses on incumbent car manufacturers from Germany and the United States, investigating how geoeconomic dynamics and national institutional configurations – particularly industrial relations, skill systems, corporate governance, and interest intermediation – impact technological change. The project employs qualitative case study methods and draws on semi-structured interviews, archival data, and corporate statistics. The findings contribute to debates in comparative political economy on industrial transformations and offer insights for managing future technological and socioeconomic transitions.