Volkswagen: Shaping the future together: three world premieres at Auto Shanghai 2017 focus on e-mobility
Source: AW Automotive World on April 18, 2017
New models, new partnerships, new technologies: the Volkswagen Group is shaping the transition to the mobility world of tomorrow in the key sales market of China. “Shaping the future together” was the motto of the event on the eve of Auto Shanghai 2017 when the Group showcased a large number of new models including three electric world premieres: the Audi X17 BEV Coupé, the ŠKODA VISION E and the Volkswagen I.D. Crossover concept. The Group is thus underscoring its ambitious goals regarding e-mobility and driving forward its strategic realignment. That is also confirmed by the China premiere of “Sedric”, the first self-driving concept car, as well as a smart city partnership with Tongji University. In 2017 alone, the Volkswagen Group and its two Chinese partners will be launching a total of 30 new models in China, including several SUVs. Advanced voice recognition in the current fleet is to enhance user friendliness still further. To that end, a new joint venture with MobVoi, the Chinese company that specializes in artificial intelligence, has been set up.
“China is fast, vigorous, innovative and the global lead market for e-mobility”, Matthias Müller, CEO of the Volkswagen Group, told some 500 guests at the Group Media Night in Shanghai. “We are strengthening cooperation with our existing partners and at the same time entering new partnerships in order to shape a new era of mobility. We want to create a sustainable mobility world for our millions of Chinese customers. That means Volkswagen will become even more Chinese in the coming years.”
Prof. Dr. Jochem Heizmann, Member of the Board and President and CEO of Volkswagen Group China, said: “More than 30 years ago, Volkswagen joined China to lay the groundwork for the best mobility solutions in a fast-emerging economy. China’s rapid development continues today – together with our long-standing Chinese joint venture partners and through new cooperation projects we want to offer customers optimal solutions for the future of mobility.”