Commercial Vehicle Show 2026 – Summary Report

The Commercial Vehicle Show 2026, held from 21–23 April at the NEC Birmingham, brought together over 300 exhibitors and more than 15,000 industry professionals, reinforcing its position as the UK’s leading event for road freight, logistics, and commercial mobility.

Electrification is expanding beyond vehicles into full energy ecosystems

OEMs and fleet operators are increasingly having to think beyond the vehicle itself and consider the entire energy ecosystem. This includes grid interaction, depot charging, public infrastructure, and energy cost optimisation. As a result, infrastructure availability, charging speed, and total cost of operation are becoming just as important as vehicle engineering when it comes to fleet management.

Schneider Electric presented an end-to-end eMobility solution for fleet depots, combining EV charging infrastructure, electrical distribution, and energy management software into a single integrated system. Their offer spans the full lifecycle, from design and installation through to operation and maintenance.

Aegis Energy showcased a concept for multi-energy hub infrastructure aimed at fleet decarbonisation. The focus is on depot and corridor hubs that combine EV fast charging with alternative fuels such as HVO, bio-CNG, and hydrogen. Their narrative emphasised enabling practical fleet transition, supported by plans for a large-scale UK hub network rollout. Octopus also highlighted its fleet electrification-as-a-service model, which combines leasing with charging integration. Through smart tariffs and software, it aims to reduce total cost of ownership by optimising energy usage and bundling services.

OEMs and suppliers are moving toward platform-based, service-led models

The mix of OEMs, leasing companies, and digital service providers reflects a broader shift away from traditional vehicle sales toward integrated solutions that combine hardware, software, and services. Vehicles are now increasingly offered alongside financing, telematics subscriptions, uptime services, and energy solutions, forming complete fleet ecosystems.

This signals a move toward longer-term customer relationships and recurring revenue models, which in turn are shaping engineering priorities around connectivity, updatability, and system integration.

Ford Pro positioned itself as a fully integrated commercial ecosystem, bringing together vehicles, software, charging, and services into a single platform. Its focus is on maximising uptime and reducing total cost of ownership through connected data and streamlined operations. Key capabilities include real-time fleet telematics, predictive maintenance, uptime services such as FORDLiive and mobile servicing, and EV transition support through charging solutions and planning tools. It also spans procurement, financing, and maintenance, effectively operating as a full-stack fleet management platform.

ADAS and safety technologies are becoming more integrated and data-driven

There is a clear shift in commercial vehicle safety from standalone features to fully integrated safety systems. Technologies such as driver monitoring, AI-based vision systems, and broader safety platforms are combining multiple sensors and data sources to continuously monitor both vehicle surroundings and driver behaviour.

This trend is being driven not only by regulation, but also by the cost pressures fleets face from accidents, insurance and downtime, making safety a key area of ongoing investment and innovation.

Geotab demonstrated its evolution toward an AI-driven fleet intelligence platform. A central theme was the enhancement of MyGeotab with Geotab Ace, enabling natural-language queries and faster access to operational insights. The company also highlighted upgraded GO devices and sensors delivering richer real-time data, alongside integrated video telematics for driver safety and incident analysis. Additional focus areas included trailer and asset tracking, electrification readiness, and optimisation of utilisation and downtime.

Samsara presented its Connected Operations Platform with a strong emphasis on AI-driven safety and compliance. Highlights included its AI Multicam system, providing 360° in-vehicle visibility with real-time hazard detection, as well as enhanced compliance tools for digital tachograph management and proactive regulatory control. Through driver simulation experiences, the company demonstrated how AI alerts can help prevent incidents. Overall, Samsara’s positioning reflects a shift from reactive monitoring to AI-enabled, preventative fleet operations.

Other notable highlights:

The Kia PV5 was showcased as part of Kia’s Platform Beyond Vehicle (PBV) strategy, centred on a modular electric van architecture. The key idea is flexibility over fixed design: built on a dedicated EV skateboard platform with a flat floor, the PV5 supports a wide range of body styles and conversions, including cargo, crew, passenger, refrigerated, and tipper variants. This approach allows logistics operators to adapt configurations rather than rely on a single rigid van format.

Chery presented its DELIVAN lineup, a modular light commercial vehicle ecosystem designed for European urban logistics. The range includes DELIVAN PRO for standard fleet operations, DELIVAN X for more connected and intelligent use cases, and DELIVAN I, which focuses on advanced automation and autonomous delivery concepts. Rather than standalone models, the lineup integrates vehicles, software, telematics, and services into a single ecosystem. A standout element was the “robot cargo” concept—an autonomous last-mile delivery pod designed for controlled environments. Overall, DELIVAN is positioned as a scalable, software-defined platform supporting both electrification and future autonomous logistics.

Luigi Bisbiglia Senior Business Development Manager SBD Automotive

 “In summary, the show demonstrates that commercial vehicle development is no longer centred solely on the vehicle itself. Instead, it is evolving toward interconnected systems spanning vehicles, infrastructure, software platforms, and services. For engineering teams, this means greater emphasis on systems integration, data utilisation, and cross-domain collaboration, as well as the need to design solutions that operate effectively within a broader mobility ecosystem rather than in isolation.”

To explore how these trends impact your strategy and operations, we invite you to get in touch for a deeper discussion. Email info@sbdautomotive.com to connect with one of our team of experts to discuss your requirements further.