Blackberry and Qualcomm have agreed to collaborate on the development and production of automotive platforms for connected vehicles.

The non-exclusive partnership will see the pair optimise certain Qualcomm hardware platforms with Blackberry’s QNX software for use in virtual cockpit controllers (VCC), telematics, electronic control gateways, digital instrument clusters, and infotainment systems.

“BlackBerry and Qualcomm Technologies have had a long-standing relationship for over a decade, collaborating on technologies that have revolutionised the way people live and work,” said Sandeep Chennakeshu, president of BlackBerry Technology Solutions. “Todays announcement elevates our relationship as we aim to accelerate the delivery of the next generation platforms that connected vehicles will rely upon.”

The deal will also pave the way for Blackberry and Qualcomm to optimise Blackberry’s over-the-air (OTA) software and secure credential management (SCM) services for use with select Qualcomm Snapdragon modems.

“As innovation in the automotive industry accelerates it becomes necessary for industry leaders to work together to deliver leading-edge technology platforms that help to make vehicles safer, more connected, and increasingly autonomous,” said Patrick Little, SVP and general manager of automotive at Qualcomm Technologies. “Today were building on our longstanding relationship with BlackBerry to develop automotive platforms that will accelerate the industry toward a more connected future.””