Volkswagen Group establishes artificial intelligence company

Volkswagen Group announces the creation of “AI Lab”, a new company to act as a globally networked competence centre and incubator.AI Lab will identify new product ideas for the Volkswagen Group, and coordinate them internally within the Group. As the need arises, this will also include collaboration with the tech sector in Europe, China and North America.

By adopting this approach, the Volkswagen Group intends to simplify collaboration with technology companies with a view to making optimum use of the innovation potential and speed of the AI sector. The objective is to rapidly develop digital prototypes and transfer them to the Group brands for implementation.

“We want to offer our customers genuine added value with artificial intelligence. We aim to link external digital ecosystems with the vehicle, creating an even better product experience,” says Oliver Blume, CEO of the Volkswagen Group and Porsche AG. “Collaboration with technology companies is crucially important for us. In future, we intend to simplify cooperation in organisational and cultural terms.”

AI Lab will not manufacture production models, but will serve as an incubator for the Volkswagen Group. The company will identify new product ideas connected with artificial intelligence throughout the world. AI Lab will then develop concepts together with partners where the need arises, to produce early prototypes. AI Lab will have a team of artificial intelligence experts and will work closely with all the brands. High-ranking representatives of the brand groups will form the Supervisory Board.

“With our new ‘AI Lab’, we are combining technological expertise, flexibility and speed in collaboration with external partners. This will be crucial in the highly dynamic AI sector,” says Michael Steiner, Head of Research and Development of the Volkswagen Group and Member of the Executive Board, Research and Development of Porsche AG. “We will pursue highly promising initiatives in the marketplace, together with partners where this is necessary, irrespective of existing arrangements and other links in series production.”