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12 SMT007 MAGAZINE I APRIL 2018 passed around the world, and the importance and growth of the hybrid and fully electric automobile industry can't be overstated. Volvo has possibly taken the strongest stance of the automotive manufacturers by pledging to make only hybrid or fully electric cars by 2019 and committing to sell more than 1 million electric vehicles by 2025. "This announcement marks the end of the solely combustion engine- powered car," said Hakan Samuelsson, presi - dent and CEO of Volvo, in a July 2017 statement. Although we have yet to witness such bold and aggressive challenges in Southeast Asia, the region is home to a fairly strong automotive industry. For instance, Thailand is the base coun- try for many automotive OEMs, while the Phil- ippines and Malaysia are the go-to destinations for supply chain vendors including component designers and manufacturers as well as semi- conductors. This signals tremendous opportu- nities for the automotive industry in terms of autonomous vehicles and electrification. More than Electric Vehicles The move from internal combustion to hybrid and then fully electric power plants represents only the most visible portion of the aggressive growth of power electronics systems in vehi - cles. Electrification applies just as significantly Vehicle Electrification: Disrupting the Automotive Industry and Beyond Feature by Chandran Nair NATIONAL INSTRUMENTS Around the globe, governments are announc- ing mandates that will bring about the demise of the internal combustion engine. China has led the charge by requiring 8% of new vehi- cles on the road to be "new energy" or zero emission vehicles in 2018, a huge growth over the current 2–3% on the road today. Simi- lar strong government regulations limiting the future of the internal combustion engine have