Automotive group Stellantis is entering into a partnership with Estonian mobility company Bolt, which focuses on taxi services, among other things. Together, the parties intend to explore the development and roll-out of Level 4 autonomous vehicles for commercial operations in Europe.
For some time, Stellantis has been focusing on the development of autonomous vehicles through collaborations. For instance, the parent company of Alfa Romeo, Citroën, Opel, Fiat, Jeep, Ram, Dodge and Chrysler, among others, previously entered into collaborations with mobility company Uber and tech companies Nvidia and Foxconn. The new partnership with Bolt is specifically aimed at Europe.
Test vehicles on European roads
The companies plan to deploy test vehicles in European countries from 2026. Exactly which countries are involved is not known. Bolt offers ride-sharing services in more than 50 countries, including 23 EU member states. It wants to integrate Stellantis' autonomous vehicles into its mobility platform, offering fully autonomous, self-driving ride services. Bolt has been pursuing autonomous services for some time and aims to have 100,000 autonomous vehicles available on its platform by 2035.
The rollout of test vehicles is to be phased, with prototypes and pilot fleets being put on the road initially. In a later phase, Stellantis plans to scale up, with initial production of autonomous vehicles planned for 2029.
Level 4 autonomy
The parties intend to jointly develop and bring Level 4 autonomous vehicles onto the road. In most cases, these vehicles can drive completely autonomously, without human intervention. However, extreme weather conditions or complex, unforeseen situations may still require a human driver to take control.
To this end, Stellantis and Bolt will combine Stellantis' AV-Ready Platforms with Bolt's mobility network. Specifically, this involves the eK0 and STLA Small platforms. The eK0 platform is specifically aimed at light commercial vehicles, such as the Citroën Jumpy, Opel Vivaro and Peugeot Expert. The eK0 platform is used for both battery-electric and hydrogen-electric variants. Its focus includes urban distribution.
STLA Small is designed for small electric city cars and offers a range of up to 500 kilometres. The platform is flexible in wheelbase, width and suspension, making it suitable for different models within the B-segment.
'Reducing congestion and emissions'
Antonio Filosa, CEO of Stellantis, commented, "Our AV-Ready platforms are designed for maximum flexibility, allowing us to offer the best possible experience to European customers. Autonomous fleets can also contribute to a lower carbon footprint by enabling shared and optimised mobility, reducing congestion and emissions. The partnership with Bolt aims to bring this vision closer to reality, combining our technical expertise with their operational reach in the hope of making self-driving mobility a familiar part of everyday life in Europe."
Image: Stellantis
