Volkswagen Group, Mobileye and Champion Motors plan to commercialize Mobility-as-a-Service (MaaS) with self-driving electric vehicles in Israel. Development will begin in early 2019 and roll out in phases reaching full commercialization in 2022.

The partners will establish a joint venture, subject to approval by the responsible authorities and bodies. Operating as “New Mobility in Israel,” the group’s proposal was formally accepted by the Israeli government during a private ceremony at the Smart Mobility Summit 2018 in Tel Aviv.

“New Mobility in Israel” will roll out in phases and grow quickly from several dozen to hundreds of self-driving electric vehicles.

The Volkswagen Group will provide the electric vehicles (EVs) and bring in its in-depth knowledge and competency about design and deployment of user-centered mobility services.

Mobileye will provide its level-4 AV Kit—a turn-key, driverless solution comprising hardware, driving policy, safety software and map data. Champion Motors will run the fleet operations and control center.

Together, the three companies will add the mobility platform and services, content and other Mobility-as-a-Service tools, striving to deliver a seamless rider experience in the deployment of a full-stack Mobility-as-a-Service offering.

The government of Israel has committed to support the project in three main areas: furnishing legal and regulatory support; sharing the required infrastructure and traffic data; and providing access to infrastructure as needed.

While “New Mobility in Israel” will be Israel’s first commercial Mobility-as-a-Service with self-driving vehicles, all facilitations and rulings will be applied to all other ventures that wish to operate a Mobility-as-a-Service in Israel.

Volkswagen, Mobileye and Champion Motors will use “New Mobility in Israel” to serve as a global beta site for testing and introducing the Mobility-as-a-Service model using autonomous electric vehicles.

We firmly believe that self-driving electric vehicles will offer Israel and cities around the world safe, clean and emission-free mobility, which is accessible and convenient. We are looking forward to this partnership with our local partners Mobileye and Champion Motors from Israel.

—Dr. Herbert Diess, CEO of the Volkswagen Group