What’s at stake:
The chip shortage paralyzed the automotive industry during the pandemic. What have carmakers learned and what new strategies have emerged?
The COVID-19 pandemic drastically shrank the availability of semiconductor chips and decimated the automotive industry. Finally, in mid-2023. “The worst of the fallout seems to have settled, and the auto industry has found a new normal,” according to recent analysis by S&P Global Mobility. The report said, “In short, the dearth of supply of semiconductor chips that hobbled vehicle production for most of 2021 and 2022 has faded into the background — with some exceptions.”
However, it’s unclear which lessons car OEMs learned, and whether their new strategy – devised to deal with “a new normal” – will work.