Volvo will supply Uber with a fleet of self-driving vehicles

Autonomous technology is being developed more and more, and little by little all users will have access to it. Several vehicles already offer this type of driving as an extra , and as time goes by it will be present in practically every segment. But Volvo has thought about increasing this accessibility and that is why it has reached an agreement with Uber to supply them with 100% autonomous vehicles.

For us to see this agreement in motion, some years still have to pass, though fewer than we imagine. It will be between 2019 and 2021 that the Swedish brand makes its entire fleet of self-driving vehicles available to Uber. Even so, this agreement is not exclusive, but it helps strengthen the relationship between Volvo and Uber, which began in 2016. This will help both companies move forward considerably, though in different fields.

Volvo will use its latest technology to bring its autonomous vehicles to life and, to do so, it will rely on what it calls SPA. This is a scalable, fully modular product architecture developed entirely by the Swedish firm, and it will be used as the basis for all of its autonomous models. The SPA system has already been used in some of its recent products, such as the Volvo XC60 or the S90, where it performs excellently.

Uber has signed a contract under which more than 20,000 self-driving cars will be supplied by Volvo. The brand will use as its base one of its star products, the Volvo XC90. This SUV will be made available to customers of the American company and will make journeys without a driver.

“Our goal is to be the leading supplier to companies providing autonomous shared mobility services on a global scale. The agreement signed yesterday with Uber is a clear example of this strategic direction.” said Håkan Samuelsson, president and chief executive of Volvo Cars.

At the same time, Volvo wants to take the opportunity to carry out a series of studies on the functionality of autonomous vehicles and to work on its other commercial projects. In this way, the Swedish firm seeks to present its first fully autonomous model in 2021. For now, only some of its products offer this mode, but they are performing very well and are coming dangerously close to Tesla.

For now we will have to wait to see these vehicles in action, but they will represent a revolution in the transport sector and will help Uber keep moving forward. Volvo may enjoy a strong presence of its most technological vehicles on our streets.

Technical specifications of this car

Off-RoadVolvo XC9010 versions · from 82,200 €