I own a Tesla, which is essentially a computer on wheels. Much of the way the car works is driven by software, which I love. New features have appeared and minor fixes come through in the same way that they do for apps on my mobile device. It can be annoying to wait for an update to install, which has happened when my wife or I start the update remotely and don't realize the other is planning on driving. Fortunately, I can set these to run overnight from my phone and they mostly disappear into the background.

I don't worry about Tesla failing, at least, that hasn't been on my mind, but I ran into this article about a company in China that is failing. The WM Motor Company filed for bankruptcy, and perhaps coincidently, their app stopped working. Owners couldn't manage basic functions. The company put the server back up, but that brings up a bit of a concern for software that depends on external connections.

This raises concerns for Fisker in the US, and really, for any sort of device that one might buy that could depend on an Internet connection for operation. It's one thing to have updates and options, it's another for a device to just stop working because the company is gone.

Consumers don't have a lot of power with regard to software companies, but we do have some. As software becomes more prevalent and important in other parts of our lives, I would advocate for some sort of open-sourcing of software in live devices if companies fail, or even if they decide to discontinue support. I have a 23-year-old car that works fine, and I can get parts. Dealers don't want to work on it, and it has been a challenge at times to find OEM parts, but there are plenty of third parties.

We ought to have third parties in software as well.

Most of you work for a company, which often makes its own software. If your company abandons a piece of software, everyone adapts and moves on. Even if your company sells a service, it makes sense they could discontinue the service. However, when you sell a physical product or even a physical install of software, I think you ought to give customers a way to maintain their system if you decide to stop doing so.

Update: another issue with Fisker (SMH)