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The VDA winter conference discussed the development of 1234yf and R744 applications. The annual meeting of experts in the automotive air conditioning industry, held in Salzburg, Austria, did not provide any answers regarding the safety, cost, and technical maturity of chemical refrigerants, but it did explore in depth the pressures faced by the chemical industry. In contrast, the electrification of cars is expected to arrive sooner, bringing CO2 technologies back into the spotlight. From February 11th to 12th, the VDA’s winter annual conference was held in Salzburg, Austria, with 180 participants attending the event. Most of them believed that this year’s conference was the poorest in terms of technical information provided, while it contained an obviously excessive amount of information on policies and updates from chemical companies. However, the 2009 VDA Winter Conference provided some interesting insights regarding the current status of next-generation refrigerant alternatives, particularly regarding the medium-term development prospects of refrigerants in electric vehicles, the pressure on installation costs in the chemical industry, and research into another miraculous solution with a low GWP value. A key message that emerged from the meeting was that CO2 technology represents the most viable solution for plug-in hybrid vehicles (PHEVs) and all-electric vehicles (EVs). Now, these two types of cars are high on automakers’ agendas and are expected to become popular over the next decade. Considering that the crisis facing the industry today \"has a greater impact than ever before,\" it is necessary to think in creative ways in order to survive, and to place the electrification of vehicles at the forefront of development plans, concluded Stefan Whrl, a representative of the German Automobile Industry Association, who mentioned this point in his opening speech. Therefore, a questionnaire distributed to the participants showed that CO2 (R744) is considered the best candidate alternative for developing high-efficiency heat pump functions required in PHEV and EV vehicles. The vast majority of voters (74) voted in favor of R744, while only 17 believed that the alternative chemical formulation HFO-1234yf would be the best solution. The other two issues relate to the technical maturity of 1234yf, its readiness for production, and its safety, in light of the upcoming deadline set by the EU for 2011. Similarly, these two issues reflect the skepticism in the industry regarding this matter. A total of 99 people responded to the survey, of whom 70–78 believed that there was a lack of evidence to show that 1234yf could meet all the requirements.