VW will deploy ‘thousands’ of robotaxis on Uber’s platform in the US

Volkswagen isn’t typically mentioned successful conversations astir robotaxis, but the German car elephantine has been softly moving connected its ain self-driving exertion for implicit a decade. And present the institution is acceptable to deploy its archetypal autonomous vehicles connected Uber’s ridehailing platform, starting with a commercialized robotaxi work successful Los Angeles successful 2026.

The vehicles volition beryllium VW’s ID Buzz electrical minivans equipped with self-driving sensors and bundle developed by subsidiary Moia. The long-wheel basal mentation of the Buzz tin spot astatine slightest 7 passengers, truthful VW is intelligibly trying to maximize its ridehailing potential. The extremity is to yet person “thousands” of vehicles operating successful aggregate US cities implicit the adjacent decade, the automaker says.

VW volition statesman investigating the work aboriginal this year, utilizing vehicles with information drivers down the wheel. The institution says it volition lone proceed with afloat driverless operations aft receiving the indispensable permits and clearance from regulatory agencies.

VW has been investigating its self-driving exertion successful the US for a fig of years. It deployed autonomous Buzz vehicles successful Austin, Texas, successful 2023, aft a fig of years investigating them successful Germany. The vehicles it tested successful Austin usage exertion developed by Mobileye, the driver-assist sensor and bundle institution owned by Intel, arsenic good arsenic sensors similar cameras, radar, and lidar. 

VW has said that it volition enactment the vans successful work arsenic a ridesharing fleet nether its subsidiary Moia, which has been operating a fleet of electrical vehicles arsenic portion of its “ride-pooling” work successful Hamburg since 2017. VW’s autonomous driving bundle is developed by different subsidiary, Cariad, which has gone done galore enactment shakeups in the past year.

VW has dabbled successful autonomous driving for years — but not without setbacks. VW has successful the past partnered with self-driving startups similar Aurora and Argo, the second of which was forced to unopen down aft the automaker, on with Ford, pulled its funding.

“Volkswagen is not conscionable a car manufacturer—we are shaping the aboriginal of mobility, and our collaboration with Uber accelerates that vision,” said Christian Senger, CEO of Volkswagen Autonomous Mobility, successful a statement. “What truly sets america isolated is our quality to harvester the champion of some worlds—high-volume manufacturing expertise with cutting-edge exertion and a heavy knowing of municipality mobility needs.”

Meanwhile, Uber has been connected a streak of striking deals with AV operators arsenic it seeks to go a one-stop store for robotaxis and autonomous transportation vehicles of each brands. In summation to VW, Uber has partnerships with Waymo, Motional, Avride, and WeRide for self-driving cars, and Serve, Cartken, and Nuro for transportation robots.