How Europe will roll out EVs

By Ross Douglas CEO @Autonomy

I recently travelled to London for our annual London AV Summit (in partnership with London & Partners and the Smart Mobility Living Lab: London ). It was located at Woolwich Works , which is around the corner from SMLL where companies can test autonomous vehicles (AVs) on public roads.?

The focus of our summit is integrating AVs into the mobility mix, and we had public transport authorities, government policy-makers and AV companies getting together to share their AV plans.?

Announced in the King’s Speech on 20 May this year, the government’s world-leading Automated Vehicles Act enables AVs to drive on British roads. According to the UK government website, “The new law puts Great Britain firmly at the forefront of self-driving technology regulation, unlocking the potential of an industry estimated to be worth up to ￡42 billion and creating 38,000 more skilled jobs by 2035.”

With the legislation in place, operators are starting to figure out new business models for deployment. Perhaps the most illuminating conversation of the event was one I had with Jeroen Beukers, innovation expert for public transport in Geneva, where bus drivers cost the city €100 000 per year and are hard to find. Speak to any PTO (public transport operator) or logistics company and they say the same thing – our drivers are close to retirement age and young people don't want to become drivers.?

Takeaways

My guess is that Europe will move quickly with AVs driven by PTOs, airports and later on logistics companies. And that this will be good news for Europe’s most ambitious company in the shuttle space, VW Moia, who have signed deals with the cities of Berlin and Hamburg. VW Moia’s head of Business Development, Reiner Becker, believes that they will be live next year and start deploying quickly from 2026. Who will they have to compete against?

Waymo’s Ben Loewenstein participated in the summit but kept his cards close to his chest about when and how Waymo will deploy in Europe. With Ben based in London, Waymo surely has plans for Europe. Their recent partnership with Geely’s Zeeker would make the perfect shared people mover for European streets.?

Then there are the Chinese players, with WeRide and Baidu’s Apollo offering some of the world’s most advanced autonomous driving systems. Both companies seek opportunities in Europe. WeRide partnered with Renault at Roland Garros to ferry fans back and forth from the tennis, and will be looking to convert that test into permanent deployment. Renault by partnering with them can compete with VW Waymo without the heavy development costs.?

The politics around robotaxis will also be complicated. One decision-maker from a large PTO told me that they do not want to use technology from Israel (a leader thanks to Mobileye) until the war is resolved. American lawmakers are concerned that AV technology (AVs, LiDAR, RADAR, cameras, AI, and other advanced sensors and semiconductors) can all be used to collect data on Americans, and on American infrastructure, that could be shared with the ruling Chinese Communist Party. In a world of declining trust, these will be major issues to overcome

But AVs are coming and will fill many niches. Francois Ramond (who leads SNCF’s? autonomous program) presented French rail’s plan to use old railway lines for shuttles and to dedicate roads to AVs, with cycle and pedestrian pathways alongside.? Every country faces the challenge of moving small numbers of people in rural areas. Their idea of a public service, operating like a tram, makes sense.?

Recently listed Aurrigo (based in Coventry) pivoted to aviation with their autonomous cargo tugs that move stuff between planes and terminals. With over 100 0000 daily flights around the world, Aurrigo’s COO, Richard Fairchild has an endless runway of opportunity.?

What’s happening at Autonomy

AV Industry Resource

Last week we also launched the AV Ecosystem Landscape with Marc Amblad. The response has been overwhelming, with more than 500+ downloads in a week. It is the most comprehensive AV resource of its kind; download it here and add your company if you are not already on it.

Global Decarbonization Expo

Now with the London AV Summit over, we are fully focused on the Global Decarbonization Expo (GDE) scheduled for March 19 - 20th, 2025 next year at Porte De Versailles, and the Global Decarbonization Summit, in partnership with the La Poste Groupe (Europe’s largest EV fleet owner) and taking place at their HQ. We are inviting exhibitors from the following four industries: Solar, Battery Energy Storage Systems, Autonomous Vehicles, and Commercial and Industrial EVs. On the buying side we have identified Data Centres, Depots & Distribution Companies, Utilities, and Cities and Public Transport Authorities as having the biggest budgets to decarbonize. We will be working with these industries and institutions to attend.?

Feel free to download our deck here !