Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Cars
  3. News

Volkswagen and Mobileye plan autonomous ridesharing service for Israel

Stephen Edelstein
By
Volkswagen I.D. Crozz concept
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Volkswagen and Intel-owned Mobileye are teaming up to launch a ridesharing service in Israel using autonomous electric cars. Development of the project will begin in 2019, with full commercialization in 2022, the partners said in a press release. VW and Mobileye are racing against competitors like Waymo, Uber, Ford, and General Motors to be the first to commercialize self-driving cars.

Under the terms of the partnership, Volkswagen will provide electric cars, while Mobileye will provide the hardware needed to make them autonomous. A third partner, Champion Motors, will oversee fleet management and run a control center. The Israeli government will clear any regulatory red tape, as well as provide access to traffic data and infrastructure. This will clear the path for other ventures wishing to launch autonomous ridesharing services in Israel, VW and Mobileye said.

Recommended Videos

As both automakers and tech companies continue to develop self-driving cars, the emphasis is firmly on ridesharing rather than private ownership. Waymo plans to launch a commercial-scale ridesharing service in Arizona before the end of this year, and Uber has long sought to replace its human drivers with machines. General Motors has indicated that it is close to launch a ridesharing service through its Cruise Automation division, while Ford has said the self-driving car it has promised to launch in 2021 will be aimed at commercial fleets rather than individual owners.

Related

Concentrating on ridesharing offers a number of advantages. It allows companies to maintain tighter control of what is, after all, a new and largely untested technology. Operators can ensure that cars never stray out of a well-mapped area through geofencing, and can regularly evaluate vehicles when they return to their home base.

Cars used for ridesharing can also continually generate revenue for automakers and tech companies, while selling them to individual buyers severely curtails opportunities for future revenue. Compared to human drivers, autonomous cars could generate vastly more money in ridesharing because they can stay on the road longer.

Mobileye previously supplied hardware to Tesla for the Silicon Valley automaker’s Autopilot driver-assist system, but discontinued that relationship. The company now conducts autonomous-car research in concert with parent Intel, as well as BMW. Volkswagen previously partnered with U.S. startup Aurora Innovation on autonomous-driving tech. VW is planning to launch a family of electric cars over the next few years as it looks to put a massive diesel-emissions scandal behind it.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics
Stephen Edelstein
Stephen Edelstein
Contributing Editor
Stephen is a freelance automotive journalist covering all things cars. He likes anything with four wheels, from classic cars…
Waymo’s robotaxis are coming to Uber’s ridesharing app
A Waymo autonomous vehicle.

Uber will soon offer rides in Waymo's autonomous vehicles using the regular Uber app. It will also integrate with Uber Eats for meal delivery.

Announced on Tuesday, the service will begin toward the end of the year in the Metro Phoenix area, where Waymo is already offering driverless rides for paying passengers through its Waymo One app. Earlier this month, Waymo said it was doubling its service area in Phoenix to serve 180 square miles of The Valley, an expansion that it said makes it “the largest fully autonomous service area in the world.”

Read more
Volkswagen ID.7 shows not every EV needs to be an SUV
Profile view of the Volkswagen ID.7.

Volkswagen wants its electric cars to go head-to-head with gasoline models, but only now is it replacing one of those models with an EV.
While, the VW ID.4 is pitched as an electric alternative to popular gasoline crossover SUVs, and the ID.Buzz taps a well of nostalgia, the Volkswagen ID.7 fills a gap in the lineup left by the Passat, which ended production with the 2022 model year after nearly 50 years as VW's staple sedan in the United States.
Scheduled to go on sale in the U.S. in 2024, and previously teased at CES 2023, the ID.7 aims to breathe new life into the sedan segment with electric power, more tech, and aerodynamic styling reminiscent of the other ID models. Yet while it's a recommitment to sedans for VW, the ID.7 doesn't have the market to itself. EV shoppers already have the Hyundai Ioniq 6, Polestar 2, and Tesla Model 3 to consider.

A sleeker shape
Stripping away the camouflage shows many styling features that are recognizable from other ID models, including slim headlights mounted high on a grille-less front fascia, rounded edges, and body sides with sectioned, sloping elements like beachside cliffs that have been subject to much erosion. As with the ID.4 and ID.Buzz, the goal was to reduce aerodynamic drag and create a look that's distinctively EV.
The ID.7 is 1.7 inches longer than the Passat, with a 6.4-inch longer wheelbase that should benefit interior space. It's also a bit wider and taller than the Passat, which was a midsize sedan roughly the same size as well-known models like the Honda Accord and Toyota Camry. The ID.7 also has the fastback shape of the VW Arteon, positioned as a more luxurious model than the old Passat, but is 2.1 inches longer.
These dimensions make the ID.7 the largest VW sedan (the only other such model in VW's U.S. lineup is the compact Jetta) but put it close to other electric sedans. It's longer than the Hyundai Ioniq 6, Polestar 2, and Tesla Model 3, but the Hyundai's wheelbase is nearly the same. The VW is about as wide as these other models, but it's the tallest of the group, standing about four inches taller than the Tesla.

Read more
Autonomous cars confused by San Francisco’s fog
Waymo Jaguar I-Pace electric SUV

Driving in thick fog is a big enough challenge for humans, but it turns out self-driving cars find it pretty tricky, too.

Overwhelmed by dense fog in San Francisco early on Tuesday morning, five of Waymo’s fully driverless vehicles suddenly parked by the side of a residential street in what appeared to be a precautionary measure, the San Francisco Chronicle reported. Another of its cars apparently came to halt in the middle of the street, the news outlet said.

Read more