Qualcomm Announces the Launch of the New Official Qualcomm Safety Car for Season Two of the FIA Formula E Championship

The new Official Qualcomm Safety Car will be the BMW i8 sporting an advanced Qualcomm Halo 7.2kW wireless charging system --

SAN DIEGO -- Aug. 25, 2015: Qualcomm Technologies, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Qualcomm Incorporated , today announced the launch of the new Official Qualcomm Safety Car for season two of the FIA's Formula E Championship. The eleven race series is set to start in Beijing on October 17, 2015 and Qualcomm is excited to line up to support the motorsport world's most electrifying format. The new Official Qualcomm Safety Car is the BMW i8 but with a twist – the i8 will be charged wirelessly with an advanced Qualcomm Halo™ 7.2kW wireless charging system.

The Qualcomm Halo 7.2kW wireless charging system delivers twice the amount of energy to the BMW i8's batteries per hour as compared to last year's 3.6kW system. This approximately halves the full charge time, enabling the vehicle to fully charge in one hour. Employing Qualcomm Halo DD technology, with magnetic architecture optimization, ensures higher coupling coefficients and drives lower system currents, higher efficiencies and the ability to support higher power levels.

Season Two will see a more open championship with teams encouraged to develop their own powertrain technologies. Teams are racing to bring cutting-edge technology focused on inverters, motors, transmissions and cooling systems to their race cars; not only will this ensure the racing remains highly competitive, but it supports the goal of Formula E to advance the development of new technologies for electric vehicles and to bring those technologies, vital to sustainable mobility, to the attention of millions of people around the globe.

"We are excited to continue our support of Formula E in this second season," said Steve Pazol, general manager of wireless charging, Qualcomm Incorporated. "Qualcomm is showcasing its innovative new technologies within the Championship and using the motorsport platform to accelerate the development of automotive technologies, which is perfectly illustrated by the wireless charging technology fitted to the new BMW i8 Safety Car."

For more information on Qualcomm Technologies' Automotive Solutions please visit: Qualcomm Automotive