The color-changing concept car, called iX Flow, uses electronic ink technology normally found in e-readers to transform its exterior.

The BMW iX Flow has a special coating that transmits different color pigments to the surface via electrical stimulation. The color-changing effect varies and the coating itself allows for its diversity.

Implementing E Ink has two key benefits. The first is that it opens up a whole new world of possibilities when it comes to adapting the vehicle to the needs of the owner, allowing the color and design to change according to mood and/or atmosphere, or as iX Flow’s project manager Stella Clarke said, the car “becomes an expression of different moods and circumstances in daily life.”
For now, the color of the BMW can only alternate from white to black, but the plan is to cover a wider spectrum of colors. The company emphasizes these two colors due to the desire for energy efficiency of the car itself and the reduction of energy consumption inside the vehicle because on hot summer days the car can be completely white, to reflect sunlight and reduce heat, and it can switch to black in winter in order to absorb more sunlight and heat up the passenger compartment. BMW claims that this can reduce the use of air conditioning in the car.

The E ink technology is the same as that used in so-called e-book readers, and the iX coating is made of e-paper segments, which is why the colors are currently limited to white, black, and grey. Someday, with the further development of this technology, cars could become real chameleons.