BMW Shows i Inside Future at 2017 CES, Packs HoloActive Interface

In the words of the Bavarian automaker, this is a "sculpture," although we doubt it will be allowed inside the modern art gallery at the Guggenheim. Besides making the i3 and i8, the i brand is a think tank for all of BMW's crazy ideas.

With an autonomous future just around the corner, designers have been tasked with creating cabins where driving is no longer a task you have to perform. So the i Inside Future is like a living room on wheels, equipped with a bookshelf and what looks like a lettuce garden under the rear seats. Or is that parsley you use for your bad breath just before the meeting?

People have said that the i Inside Future is not a car because it lacks moving wheels. But the overall design is very similar to the Rolls-Royce Vision Next 100, so we don't see any issues in that department.

The sculpture still has a steering wheel for some reason, but the real magic supposedly happens when you let go. BMW says the HoloActive Touch interface is a preview of what iDrive systems of the future could be like.

Instead of screens and buttons, the user presses controls that appear to be floating in mid-air, with a camera detecting where your finger is and an ultrasonic system to give you haptic feedback.

The nav system of the future tracks your biometrics and changes the route according to what you're in the mood for. And based on your social media activity (think Facebook events), it can pick up people that are going to the same place and pick them up along the way.

Don't want to listen to the same music as a total stranger? Somehow, the sound system can cocoon each person in the soundtrack of his choice... somehow.

Once you're in the autonomous driving mode, the system can also provide you video content based on how much time you've got before reaching the destination. So you could watch Mission Impossible on your way to see the parents for the holidays or the latest BMW film, The Escape, while commuting to work.