Volkswagen Launches 'MOIA' Mobility Services Company

The brand will offer on-demand shuttle services by building its own pure-electric people movers

The Volkswagen Group today officially launched its new mobility services company at the "Tech Crunch Disrupt" technology event in London. Named MOIA, the new company will be headquartered in Berlin and will begin operations with a team of just 50 people, with the number expanding to around 200 by the end of 2017.

This is the VW Group’s 13th sub-brand and is aimed at making mobility greener while solving issues like urban congestion. 

How will it do this? Well, Volkswagen will build electric people-movers specifically with the aim of giving people the benefits of an on-demand shuttle service, while offering it at prices that can compete with those of traditional public transport modes. Not only can these shuttles be used by individuals through a ride-hailing app, it will integrate pooling services as well to reduce unnecessary journeys, bring costs down and optimize the existing road infrastructure.

Initially, the fleet will include models like the VW Transporter mini-bus, but they will eventually be replaced by 6- and 8-seater electric vehicles. Concepts of the latter could be revealed as early as next year! The new zero-tail pipe emission vehicles will also be capable of autonomous driving and MOIA’s driverless car prototypes could begin trial runs in 2019. MOIA’s aims to begin public operations in at least two major European cities by the end of 2017, with expansion plans set for China and the USA.

The plan has benefits that are two-fold – for urban users, it can reduce congestion while providing some benefits of car ownership. For Volkswagen, it’s a great way to counter dropping car ownership while maintaining profitability.