Volkswagen to deploy thousands of autonomous vehicles by the end of the decade as it joins forces with Uber

Volkswagen has announced it will be deploying thousands of autonomous electric vehicles over the next decade in conjunction with ride share service Uber. 

The announcement sees an exciting commercial application for the autonomous driving tech Volkswagen has been testing in the United States and Europe using its fully electric ID. Buzz retro-styled people movers.

The ID. Buzz has also been chosen to be the first Volkswagen model to go on to Uber's fleet of autonomous vehicles in the United States, with Los Angeles being the first city slated to have the service up and running by 2026.

“Volkswagen is not just a car manufacturer — we are shaping the future of mobility, and our collaboration with Uber accelerates that vision,” said Christian Senger, CEO of Volkswagen Autonomous Mobility. 

“What really sets us apart is our ability to combine the best of both worlds — high-volume manufacturing expertise with cutting-edge technology and a deep understanding of urban mobility needs.”

Testing for the ID. Buzz Uber service will begin later this year before operations start next year, but Volkswagen has been thoroughly testing its autonomous driving technology since 2016 through its tech company MOIA.

It won't be the first autonomous vehicle that Uber operates. Uber has also partnered with Waymo, a subsidiary of Google and one of the first autonomous ride hailing platforms to operate successfully.

Uber is now seeing the Volkswagen collaboration as it competes in what is likely to be a growing market of self-driving ride hailing vehicles. 

 "Through our work with Uber, we'll introduce the ID. Buzz, the reimagined version of the iconic Microbus in all-electric form, to a growing number of riders in the years to come."

When operations begin in 2026 the autonomous ID. Buzz Uber will have a human chaperone until the technology is bedded down.

The service is only being offered currently in the United States which has been the proving ground for most of the world’s autonomous driving ride hailing services such as Waymo and Cruze.

Waymo will have been testing and operating its fleet of autonomous cars for 10 years in US cities including San Francisco, Los Angeles and Austin. This year Japan will be the first country outside the US to run the Waymo service with Tokyo being the chosen city. 

The technology has come far and Waymo vehicles operate without a human babysitter, though it hasn’t been without incident. There have been cases where Waymo vehicles have malfunctioned or become confused causing traffic jams. In other cases the autonomous vehicle has been damaged and vandalised by members of the public.