German auto maker, Volkswagen (OTC:VLKAF) (ETR:VOWG_p) (VW) announced Thursday their plans to launch autonomous, or self-driving, vehicles for ride hailing and goods delivery services in Austin, Texas by 2026.
VW had previously made a costly investment into Ford's (NYSE:F) now-defunct self-driving car unit, Argo. The company took nearly 100 people from Argo, as well as its hub in Austin where Argo was testing autonomous vehicles and in a strategic shift has been partnering with supplier Mobileye (NASDAQ:MBLY).
In line with this new direction, VW announced its intention to conduct tests of their 10 ID Buzz electric vehicles in specific areas of Austin, including the downtown area. These vehicles have been equipped with Mobileye's autonomous driving platform through retrofitting and will have safety drivers present during the tests.
"The big aim is that we bring fully autonomous vehicles to the market as a commercial, scalable product," said Christian Senger, a Volkswagen board member who oversees development of autonomous driving.
"We're currently actively evaluating different opportunities for different cities," said Katrin Lohmann, president, Volkswagen ADMT.