Volkswagen To Create Its Own Software For Autonomous Cars

Volkswagen intends to develop most of its software for autonomous vehicles in-house, Markus Duesmann, head of the German automaker’s Audi brand, said Tuesday

According to Duesmann, who sits on the board of directors of Volkswagen, where he is responsible for research and development, the company has not refused to cooperate with technology companies in some areas.

“But we will make most of the software ourselves in the future,” he said at an industry event.

Asked if Volkswagen considers Alphabet’s Google as a benchmark in software development, Duesmann said he would like to be at least at the same level.

Daimler and Volkswagen are developing their own operating systems for autonomous vehicles to compete in the field of electric vehicle data collection with major tech firms such as Apple and Amazon.

Despite repeated calls to unite with competitors, Volkswagen still continues to act alone, explaining its position by the fact that it is in the second place in the ranking of the largest car manufacturers in the world.

“Our level forces us to collaborate with ourselves from the start,” Duesmann said, adding that the automaker is confident in its ability to set new standards in software development for autonomous vehicles. He also noted that other companies will be able to join these standards if they wish.

Volkswagen is developing the operating system VW.OS at the newly formed Car.Software.Org division, which employs about 5,000 people.

Source: Reuters