Players old and new are investing heavily to prepare for the future of mobility, but exactly what that trend entails, and over which timeframe, remains undeniably vague. Bringing new start-ups or unfamiliar technologies into the fold can provide a welcome boost to developments, but it is also risky business.

Thus, many of the automotive industry’s household names have established standalone corporate investment firms to pursue new – and potentially lucrative – ventures, without exposing the core business to significant risk.

In October 2016, Tier 1 supplier ZF formed Zukunft Ventures, a wholly owned corporate private equity unit. It joins …