VW Bus successor to be able to drive autonomously
According to the company, the supervisory board of Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles (VWN) has allocated financial resources in an undisclosed amount for a development programme whose goal is autonomous driving in cities. According to current plans, the company plans to start field trials in Germany in 2025. In this context, the sensing and compute platform of VW partner Argo AI is to make the ID Buzz capable of autonomous driving. “The goal is to develop a ride-hailing and pooling concept similar to what MOIA offers today,” said Christian Senger, head of autonomous driving at VWN. “In the middle of this decade, our customers will then be able to have autonomous vehicles take them to their respective destinations in selected cities.”
As part of their cooperation, Ford Motor Company and VWN have invested equally in Argo AI, a company specialising in software platforms for autonomous driving. The aim is to develop and use autonomous systems. In addition to the initial investment of one billion US dollars, Volkswagen also contributed its subsidiary AID (Autonomous Intelligent Driving) to Argo AI. With the release of funds until 2025 now confirmed by the supervisory board of the Volkswagen Group, VWN is taking the next significant step on the road to the autonomous future of mobility.
Within the Volkswagen Group, the commercial vehicle brand VWN is responsible for the development of fully autonomous systems and their commercial use in urban areas. VWN will develop and build corresponding special purpose vehicles (SPV), such as robo-taxis and transporters. In addition to the investment in Argo AI, the Group is investing in projects of VW’s own Car.Software organisation. There, in parallel and independently of Argo AI, assisted and automated driving functions up to Level 4 are being developed for all Volkswagen Group brands for individual mobility.
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