The Future Is Now: Andre Hudson of INDI EV On How Their Technological Innovation Will Shake Up The Tech Scene
An Interview With Fotis Georgiadis
Don’t take criticism too personally. As designers, everything is personal which means we are naturally defensive. Everyone has different perspectives and thus different input. Embrace that input and put it to use to make your work better.
As a part of our series about cutting edge technological breakthroughs, I had the pleasure of interviewing Andre Hudson, Head of Design at INDI EV.
Andre Hudson is Head of Design at INDI EV, a company that specializes in the design of the next generation of electric vehicles. Having designed cars for Chrysler, Chevy, Cadillac, Saturn, Hyundai and more, Andre is one of the most revered Black car designers in the automotive design game. In his current role at INDI EV, Andre was instrumental in launching INDI ONE, the world’s first electric vehicle with an onboard supercomputer.
Thank you so much for doing this with us! Can you tell us a story about what brought you to this specific career path?
I grew up in the Mile High City of Denver, Colorado, and always had an eye to sky, wanting desperately to fly for the Air Force. When my eyesight began to falter in high school, I saw an article in an automotive magazine highlighting the design team of the Dodge Viper concept. I took a chance and sent a letter to Chrysler Design and received a response a few months later, which changed the course of my life forever. I went to Detroit, where I studied at Detroit’s College for Creative Studies. Shortly after, I was hired by General Motors, where I worked on production and advanced concepts for Chevy, Cadillac and Saturn. I was so very blessed to be a part of some iconic vehicles for General Motors, including the Cadillac Cien, Cadillac Sixteen, Chevy SSR and eventually Saturn Sky Roadster. After my role with General Motors, I moved to Los Angeles to work for Hyundai Motors, where I lead the design of key products, including the 2011 “Fluidic Sculpture” Sonata and Elantra and the 2017 Genesis G90 luxury sedan.
After working with some pretty big names in the automotive industry, I decided to take a chance and joined INDI EV, an electric vehicle startup, in 2019. The role captured my interest in more ways than one. For instance, there’s a disconnect in the software experience when consumers transition from using their computers or phones to getting into their cars. INDI EV saw an opportunity to bridge this gap and create a car that’s more than just a mode of transportation — but as a device that can support and enhance your life.
Fast forward two years later and we just recently launched the INDI ONE, the world’s first electric car with the sector’s first onboard supercomputer. Built with a Vehicle Integrated Computer (VIC), the INDI ONE allows drivers to create content and engage with audiences, assists with everyday life tasks, and offers an unprecedented range of customizable hardware and software features. I’m incredibly proud of what my team has accomplished as we’ve truly pushed the limits of what a car can do.
I have always loved machines and I inherited an artistic/creative gene from my father. When I found out that you could fuse these two passions together and build a career path, I was determined to succeed. I was fortunate to have two parents that have always been encouraging, so when I told them I wanted to head off to art & design school they said “Andre, go get’em.”
Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you began your career?
I have so many amazing stories from my career. From working on pieces for show cars on Christmas eve in England and flying them personally to Detroit to make it in time for the auto show, to designing theme proposals that I truly believed were right to shape the company. Take the design for the Sonata, for example. It started out as a ‘B-side’ model as we say in design, something you just try on the other half of an already existing model. That effort was compelling enough for Hyundai leadership to pick it out of the three finalist themes and it went on to truly shape the course of the company in the public eye for nearly the next decade. And of course, this latest endeavor of being able to build a new kind of product and brand from the ground up like we are doing at INDI EV.
Can you tell us about the cutting edge technological breakthroughs that you are working on? How do you think that will help people?
At INDI EV, I realized that the future of electric vehicle architecture is actually more compelling if you focus on what this architecture can do for you as a digital tool, not one that moves you from 0–60 in break-neck speeds. If you take advantage of having an electric, self-contained mobile device with the latest digital hardware, computing capability, 5G connectivity and communication hardware integrated, you’ve created a powerful tool that people can use to create, communicate, connect and even educate. Also, giving developers this package as an open toolbox means the potential possibilities are endless.
How do you think this might change the world?
Most simply, the average consumer sees their vehicle as a mode of transportation that gets them from point A to B, but that is because that’s all it’s ever been. The future of vehicles can potentially be so much more, allowing you to engage with people socially, explore the world around you and create content and applications that can be used in limitless situations, from personal family time to social services.
Keeping “Black Mirror” in mind, can you see any potential drawbacks about this technology that people should think more deeply about?
I loved that series! Like any set of tools, I imagine there will be someone from the onset that is trying to figure out how to use it maliciously. Staying on top of these potential mis-uses and coming up with ways to counter those uses will be a task for not only the developers and manufacturers, but for the users themselves as well.
Was there a “tipping point” that led you to this breakthrough? Can you tell us that story?
The INDI EV team and myself saw an opportunity that other automotive cars haven’t — that thoughtful design and technology can expand the horizons of how a vehicle can support and enhance your life. We want to empower drivers with the ‘you do you’ mentality, and that’s at the core of everything we do at INDI EV. I’m so honored to have the opportunity to bring this ambitious concept to life and make it real. Filling in the pieces of this innovative concept has been incredibly rewarding.
What do you need to lead this technology to widespread adoption?
I think as we launch our first vehicle, the INDI ONE, and continue to share with people what it means to have a computer integrated within a vehicle to serve multiple tasks, and them give them the digital tools to build on the foundation, this idea will run like a wildfire. As I said before, one of the most exciting things about this project is hearing what other people do with it that we have not even thought of!
What have you been doing to publicize this idea? Have you been using any innovative marketing strategies?
We are just launching as your readers digest this. We have taken a less direct and traditional automotive approach to how we are introducing this first product offering, not so much auto show “ta-da!” and cover pulled but more of, “hey, did you hear about what these guys are doing?”
None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?
I have had mentors and Heads of Design that believed in me along the way and gave me a shot. My parents and particularly my grandfather was always my biggest fan. He encouraged me through college and would always help out financially along the way. Of course, he was the first to brag about his grandson’s latest projects to his bicycling crew. And through the last nearly 25 years of my career my beautiful wife, Jaymini, has always held down the fort on the home front and supported me through all the business trips away and late nights at the studio.
How have you used your success to bring goodness to the world?
Let’s face it, a lot of people get really excited about their cars. I do get joy knowing that my emotion and passion gave people this object of joy that does become a member of the family. Also, I have had the opportunity to spend time in elementary, middle and high schools sharing with our younger generations that you can make a great life for yourself being creative. This is not encouraged in our world today, particularly here in the US. Kids need to know that many of the things that shape their life are here because a creative person envisioned and brought to fruition that product, whether it be your smart phone, shoes you are wearing or car you are driving, they started in someone’s imagination.
What are your “5 Things I Wish Someone Told Me Before I Started” and why.
- Don’t take criticism too personally. As designers, everything is personal which means we are naturally defensive. Everyone has different perspectives and thus different input. Embrace that input and put it to use to make your work better.
- There’s going to be a lot of times your work doesn’t advance as far forward as you’d want. Cherish the times it does.
- No matter how passionate you are about what you are doing, you are not always right. My wife would say I still haven’t learned this one.
- If want to own the Lamborghini, don’t be the designer, be the owner of the company ☺
- Remember through the stress and challenges of timing and cost constraints that you are still being paid to be creative. How awesome is that!
You are a person of great influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. 🙂
Just let people know you see them. Look a stranger in the eye and ask how they are doing. I’m serious, most don’t believe you asked. In today’s world everyone’s head is down in their dang screens. Look up, smile and listen sometimes, your world is actually right in front of you.
Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?
Treat everyone like you want to be treated. I learned from my grandfather that I mentioned before to treat everyone with the same courtesy and respect. He was a successful businessman that built and owned various real estate holdings, and he would talk to the person cleaning the pool in one of the hotels they same way he would speak to his executives. People always respected him for that and worked hard for him, and I try to do the same in my own life.
Some very well known VCs read this column. If you had 60 seconds to make a pitch to a VC, what would you say? He or she might just see this if we tag them 🙂
We at INDI EV believe we are creating the next generation of electric vehicles. We want to create a future where the automobile is no longer defined by the metrics of horsepower and acceleration, but by the software technology and artificial technology at its core. There will be a limitless amount of possibilities that people can and will do with this mobile tech toolbox.
How can our readers follow you on social media?
https://www.linkedin.com/in/andre-hudson-84348713/
Thank you so much for joining us. This was very inspirational.
The Future Is Now: Andre Hudson of INDI EV On How Their Technological Innovation Will Shake Up The… was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.
