Well-known German manufacturer the Volkswagen Group has teamed up with ride-hailing taxi app Gett to create the standalone mobility services brand MOIA.
Here, VW cars dealership Inchcape Volkswagen takes a look at how the Volkswagen Group’s 13th brand is shaping up and how it could change the way we look at lift-sharing, autonomous cars and electrification:
What is MOIA?
MOIA was introduced by Volkswagen at the 2016 TechCrunch Disrupt London show. The name comes from the ancient Sanskrit word for magic.
To be headquartered in the German capital city of Berlin, the brand was established just months after it was revealed that the Volkswagen Group had made a $300 million investment in Gett.
As a result, the pair have begun a partnership that will not just be about building cars but also achieve end-to-end services. In fact, the brand already has an aim to become a market leader in new mobility services such as ride-sharing and pooling shuttle services by the time 2025 arrives.
Ole Harms, the chief executive of the MOIA brand, commented: “MOIA is a standalone company under the Volkswagen Group umbrella, and will develop and market its own mobility services either independently or in partnership with cities and existing transport systems.
“In parallel, the Group brands will continue to move forward with their own services. Our sights are set on becoming one of the global top players for mobility services in the medium term. To achieve that, we will be seeking to attract the best minds and technology start-ups.”
Proposed deadlines for the MOIA brand
Despite still only in its infancy as a company, those working at MOIA already have a few target dates to work towards:
- 2017: The MOIA brand will officially launch, whereby pilot projects will be introduced into two European cities. These locations have yet to be revealed.
- Late 2017: The first purpose-built electric vehicle under the MOIA name will be revealed.
- 2021: Established mobility services will be in place from MOIA.
- 2026: The MOIA brand will be one of the top three mobility providers. To achieve this, the brand aims to have a fleet of more than a million app-summoned autonomous electric vehicles in operation.
The case for ride-sharing schemes
The Volkswagen Group isn’t the only company in the motoring world to recently begin taking ride-sharing schemes more seriously…
- Fellow German automotive giants BMW and Daimler have both provided funding into apps and start-up services related to ride-sharing schemes.
- Japanese car maker Toyota has completed an investment and partnership with Uber.
- General Motors has invested $500 million into Lyft.
Why the significant uptake in interest? Volkswagen’s chief executive Matthais Müller offers this insight focusing on the new MOIA brand: “Though not everyone will still own a car in future, MOIA can help make everyone a customer of our company in some way or another.”