OREANDA-NEWS. April 22, 2015. NVIDIA has won a PACE Award — the automotive industry’s version of  Academy Award – for its Tegra Visual Computing Module (VCM), which helps automakers quickly integrate cutting-edge mobile technology into their vehicles.

The PACE Awards, now in their 21st year, are judged by a panel of independent experts and given by Automotive News,. The awards recognize “game-changing innovations” that provide compelling benefits and significant competitive advantages.

Fourteen awards were given out at a black-tie event yesterday, attended by a crowd of more than 500 – virtually all to established auto suppliers.

NVIDIA, which is rapidly expanding its role as a technology partner to the auto industry, received the award for our visual computing module (VCM), which is used by Audi, Tesla Motors, BMW and other automakers.

The VCM is a modular computer built around our Tegra processor. Itcan be easily inserted into a standard 1-DIN automotive enclosure (the size of a car stereo). That means a car’s dashboard infotainment system can be easily updated, putting it on a different life cycle than the rest of the vehicle. This has helpedAudi reduce its infotainment development cycle to two years, from the industry-standard 5-7 years.

The VCM also supports over-the-air updates, helpingTesla provide new features to its customers’ Model S vehicles.

Our NVIDIA DRIVE car computers use the newest version of the VCM, and will start shipping to carmakers and developers next month. NVIDIA DRIVE computers are the world’s most advanced systems for self-driving cars and digital cockpits.