How Digital Twin Vehicle Software is Revolutionizing Mobility: Siemens & Sibros at CES 2023

At CES 2023, Munro & Associates highlighted how software is actively reshaping automotive and aerospace engineering. Their interviews with Siemens and Sibros didn’t center on flashy concepts — they focused on real, impactful tools: digital twin vehicle software, simulation platforms, and deep connectivity. These technologies reduce costs, boost safety, and support sustainable innovation.

They’re not just buzzwords — they form the backbone of modern mobility engineering.

Software-Driven Innovation: The Siemens Approach

Siemens began as a startup in a Berlin garage 175 years ago. Today, it stands as a global digital powerhouse. At CES, Chief Marketing Officer Brenda Discher explained the company’s evolution. Speaking from the Siemens booth, she outlined how the Digital Industries Software division equips automakers, aerospace firms, and machine builders with powerful tools. These tools let engineers simulate, test, and refine designs virtually — long before building a physical prototype. This shift saves time, cuts costs, and accelerates innovation.

Their core advantage? Digital twin technology.

A digital twin is a virtual replica of a physical object — whether it’s a vehicle, machine, or entire factory. These models allow engineers to simulate thousands of performance scenarios, test different materials, and predict outcomes with high precision. As Brenda explained, “If you can build it digitally, you can simulate it, iterate it, and perfect it before it’s ever built.”

This capability eliminates costly physical trials and enables safer, faster innovation. It’s particularly impactful in high-stakes industries like aerospace and emerging space travel, where failure is not an option.

Case Study 1: Space Perspective — Simulating the Edge of Space

One of Siemens’ standout partners is Space Perspective, a company redefining space tourism. Their product? A carbon-neutral, balloon-lifted capsule designed to take nine passengers to the edge of space — complete with a bar and lavatory for a six-hour round trip.

The capsule’s unique design features — including a stabilizing cone added to ensure smoother landings — were informed by Siemens’ simulation software. By digitally iterating through thousands of design tweaks, Space Perspective was able to perfect performance while eliminating the guesswork of trial-and-error prototyping.

For engineering teams, this is more than a novelty — it’s a template. With simulation and digital twin platforms, product teams can explore unconventional ideas (like balloon-lifted spacecraft) while maintaining confidence in their safety and viability.

Case Study 2: 80 Acres Farms — Precision Agriculture with Repurposed Factories

Siemens’ software also powers 80 Acres Farms, a vertical farming startup retrofitting abandoned industrial spaces across the U.S. Using digital twin tools, the company manages lighting, water, nutrient delivery, and environmental controls down to the microsecond — all inside smart indoor farms.

This level of precision, enabled by virtual modeling, allows 80 Acres to produce pesticide-free crops year-round with dramatically reduced resource usage. The result: scalable, climate-resilient agriculture that’s local, efficient, and clean.

In automotive terms, it’s the equivalent of lean manufacturing — with software managing every step of the process to optimize yield and sustainability.

Sibros: The Deep Connected Vehicle Platform

Next door at CES, Sibros offered a different take on the power of software — this time from inside the vehicle.

Chief Marketing Officer Albert Lilly explained how Sibros enables end-to-end software management for connected vehicles, from scooters to EV trucks and even boats. Their Deep Connected Platform connects every software-driven component — sensors, ECUs, microcontrollers — to enable real-time diagnostics, over-the-air (OTA) updates, and actionable data collection.

The result is full-lifecycle visibility and control for OEMs, from production through decommissioning.

Sibros isn’t just about convenience. Their platform helps manufacturers meet safety standards, reduce recall costs, and accelerate feature deployment — all without the customer ever visiting a service bay.

ECUs, OTA Updates, and the Shift to Zonal Architectures

As Munro pointed out, modern vehicles can house up to 40 electronic control units (ECUs). Sibros’ ability to communicate with every one of these systems — down to safety-critical domains — positions them as a vital tool for next-generation vehicle management.

This becomes even more critical as OEMs adopt zonal architecture, where groups of systems are managed regionally within the vehicle for better efficiency and scalability. A deep software layer, like Sibros provides, allows this architecture to function cohesively, enabling:

• OTA updates for all ECUs

• Diagnostics down to chip-level

• Real-time performance telemetry

• Seamless integration with customer-facing features

Case Study 3: e.Go Mobile — A Smart Urban EV

One of Sibros’ showcase partners was e.Go Mobile, a compact EV manufacturer from Aachen, Germany. Built for urban use, the e.Go features a swappable battery and a recyclable polymer skin — eliminating traditional paint and reducing environmental impact.

Sibros enables e.Go to deliver digital-first experiences, including app-based features, diagnostics, and fleet monitoring — all without sacrificing affordability. While not yet available in the U.S., the vehicle is already in production in Europe and demonstrates how deeply integrated software platforms can empower lean, agile EV manufacturing.

Why This Matters for Automotive Engineers

The Munro team’s interviews at CES 2023 demonstrate a major inflection point in automotive and mobility engineering. Whether it’s simulation tools enabling faster aerospace innovation, or connectivity platforms unlocking OTA updates, the message is clear: Software now drives the industry.

For engineers and investors, this means:

• Shorter development cycles: Simulate before you build. Iterate faster. Get to market quicker.

• Lower cost of innovation: Digital twins reduce waste, avoid rework, and optimize performance upfront.

• Increased vehicle value: OTA updates and connectivity allow vehicles to evolve after purchase.

• New revenue streams: Data insights enable predictive maintenance, usage-based insurance, and personalized services.

• Scalable sustainability: From recyclable vehicle skins to vertical farming in old factories, software empowers efficient, green design.

Actionable Takeaways

1. Adopt digital twin tools early in your development cycle to reduce prototyping costs and increase confidence.

2. Evaluate your OTA strategy — consider platforms like Sibros that offer end-to-end ECU integration.

3. Explore non-traditional applications of simulation and connectivity, from agriculture to aerospace.

4. Stay informed on zonal architecture evolution, and prepare your systems for deeper software abstraction.

5. Leverage data — every sensor and controller is an insight waiting to be mined.

Explore More with Munro

Want to go deeper? Munro & Associates provides teardown insights, cost analysis, and design evaluations across the EV and mobility landscape. Subscribe to Munro Live for exclusive interviews, engineering breakdowns, and data-rich content that puts you at the forefront of the software-defined vehicle revolution.

Because when software leads, innovation follows.