VW will start testing its Argo AI-powered self-driving vans in Germany this summer
VW will start testing its Argo AI-powered self-driving vans in Germany this summer
The plan is to launch a
commercial ride-pooling service in 2025
Volkswagen
will start testing its new autonomous vehicles in Germany this summer, the
company announced Wednesday. The German automaker’s electric ID Buzz vans will
use hardware and software developed by Argo AI, a Pittsburgh-based startup that
is backed by Ford and VW. The aim is to launch a commercial delivery and
micro-transit service in Germany by 2025.
Executives
from VW and Argo convened a press conference this week to provide an update on
their partnership, which was first announced in 2019
as an extension of VW’s “global alliance” with Ford. And while much of
what they discussed was already known, it did provide a closer look at the
timeline for launching a revenue-generating service using VW’s vehicles and
Argo’s autonomous technology.
Argo,
which has been testing its vehicles in the US with Ford for the last few years,
said it would be launching the fifth generation of its automated driving
technology with the VW ID Buzz, which is the electric version of the
automaker’s iconic microbus. Bryan Salesky, the startup’s founder and CEO,
praised the collaborative nature of Argo and Volkswagen’s partnership.
“We’re
building our technology and partnering with Volkswagen in a way that really
sets us apart from what others are doing,” Salesky said. “And we think it
really puts us in a position to deliver a safe, smart, and scalable product to
deliver on the promise of autonomous driving.”
That work
has already started. Earlier this year, Argo and VW developed a prototype
minivan using the German company’s MEB electric vehicle platform inside the
body of a VW T6 Transporter and Argo’s AV technology, including LIDAR sensors,
radar, and cameras. In addition, Argo’s software enables the vehicle to “see”
its environment, plan for its next steps, and predict the movements of other
vehicles and pedestrians on the road. This, in combination with Argo’s sensor
suite, allows for automated driving at low and high speeds, Salesky said.
VW said
that it plans to put the vans in service as a ride-sharing fleet under its subsidiary Moia.
Since 2017, Moia has been operating a fleet of electric vehicles as part of its
“ride-pooling” service in Hamburg, where it has served 3 million customers to
date. Those customers have provided a treasure trove of feedback that Moia CEO
Richard Henrich says will come in use as the company shifts to a completely
autonomous fleet by 2025.
“We have
learned in recent years that both customers and cities have really high and very
specific expectations towards future autonomous ride-pooling systems,” Henrich
said. “Customers, on the one hand side, expect ride-pooling to be as easy,
convenient, and reliable as riding their own car... But cities, on the other
hand, expect ride pooling to help alleviate traffic congestion.”
The AV
industry has been consolidating rapidly
over the past year, with many companies being acquired or merging
with other companies. It’s a mad dash to keep businesses afloat in the face of
lengthening timelines and steep operational costs with little expectation for
revenue generation in the near term. Robotaxis, in particular, are seen as
being further out than most companies are predicting. VW and Argo say they
remain bullish about their ability to hit the target date.
“There is
a long way to go still until this high tech becomes an enormous growth market,”
said Christian Senger, VW’s senior VP for commercial vehicles.
https://www.theverge.com/2021/5/12/22430813/vw-argo-autonomous-delivery-ride-pooling-germany
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