Reinforcing a strategic partnership first announced in August 2016, Volvo has just entered into a new non-exclusive agreement with Uber that will see the car-sharing giant buy several tens of thousands of autonomous driving-compatible vehicles between 2019 and 2021.
These vehicles will be built on Volvo’s fully modular SPA (Scalable Product Architecture) platform, already in use on the top-range 90 series of vehicles as well as the next-generation XC60 crossover.
“Our aim is to be the supplier of choice for AD ride-sharing service providers globally. Today’s agreement with Uber is a primary example of that strategic direction.”
- Håkan Samuelsson, president and chief executive, Volvo
Volvo engineers worked in close collaboration with those at Uber to develop the XC90 utility models that will expand the car-sharing company’s fleet of vehicles. Uber will then be able to add its own self-driving systems.
The Swedish automaker, for its part, intends to launch its first 100% self-driving models in 2021.
