Mazda Motor Corporation will use PTC’s Codebeamer Application Lifecycle Management (ALM) solution to underpin its move to software-defined vehicle (SDV) development, the London-based technology company has announced.
Managing mounting software complexity
Estimates suggest that a modern car now contains more than 100 million lines of code spread across as many as 100 electronic control units, and that number is rising fast with advances in autonomous driving, connectivity and in-car digital services. For manufacturers, this complexity brings formidable challenges: managing distributed teams, replacing fragmented legacy tools, and meeting exacting safety and cybersecurity regulations such as ISO 26262 and ISO 21434. Mazda’s selection of Codebeamer reflects a strategic push to bring order to that process by consolidating dispersed documentation and creating a single, traceable product data foundation.
Standardising requirements, testing and validation for full traceability
At the heart of the platform is its ability to standardise requirements, testing and validation across the entire development lifecycle, giving engineers end-to-end traceability from concept to sign-off. Codebeamer connects Model-Based Development data with requirements and validation results, enabling teams to spot issues early, maintain alignment between domains, and enforce strict checkpoints throughout safety-critical development. This traceability is critical for automotive firms: it means every stage can be audited, errors are caught sooner, and compliance with industry standards becomes a built-in feature rather than a costly afterthought. The platform also streamlines workflows and reduces the risk of late-stage failures by enforcing rigorous validation gates.
Mazda will use Codebeamer’s unified product data foundation to build a strong project knowledge base, replacing the fragmented legacy tools that often hinder collaboration and knowledge reuse. The result, according to the company, will be improved quality, assured compliance, and the ability to efficiently carry forward decisions and test results from one project to the next.
‘A connected and disciplined development environment’
Tomohiko Adachi, Supreme Principal Engineer in Mazda’s KURUMA Development Division, said the shift to software-driven vehicles demands a more integrated approach. “As our vehicles become increasingly software driven, it is essential that our product development teams operate within a connected and disciplined development environment,” he said. “Codebeamer helps us strengthen requirements traceability and visibility, supporting greater alignment across teams as we continue to evolve our development approach.” Adachi has previously noted that Mazda’s decade-long investment in model-based development has already boosted productivity significantly, and Codebeamer is expected to build on that foundation.
PTC: ‘Consolidating dispersed documentation’
Robert Dahdah, Chief Revenue Officer at PTC – who joined the company from Microsoft in December 2024 – said the partnership reflects Mazda’s embrace of the SDV model. “Using Codebeamer helps consolidate dispersed documentation, supporting requirements management and collaboration, enabling faster decision-making, more efficient product development cycles, and enhanced quality, innovation, and collaboration,” Dahdah said. He added that the platform is central to PTC’s Intelligent Product Lifecycle vision, which aims to help manufacturers build a robust product data foundation in engineering, extend that data across the enterprise, and harness it for AI-driven transformation.
Mazda’s wider SDV strategy and industry parallels
Mazda is actively deepening its work on electrical and electronic architectures through its own “Mazda Monozukuri Innovation 2.0” initiative, and has also formed a collaboration with Toyota on in-vehicle systems and software, aiming to share development costs and create a common foundation. The company’s recent product moves underline the shift: the 2026 CX-5 will come with Google built‑in for infotainment and navigation, alongside Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, while the newly unveiled MAZDA CX-6e battery EV expands the brand’s electric lineup. Codebeamer is intended to provide the underlying engineering backbone for these software-intensive vehicles and to lay the groundwork for future AI-enabled workflows.
The adoption is part of a broader trend. BMW Group recently implemented Codebeamer as its standard for requirements management, aiming for a unified digital engineering foundation. Analysts have noted that PTC’s stock gained attention after the Mazda announcement, with the platform seen as well suited for complex, safety-focused automotive programmes that demand rigorous traceability and regulatory compliance.
