• Opinion
Ford and Volkswagen are shifting their AV development goals. Did they really understand what it takes to develop safe AVs at scale?
The Ford Escape Hybrid was phased into Argo's U.S. test fleet in 2021. Later that year, the first Volkswagen test vehicles based on the upcoming ID.Buzz began operating in Munich.
What’s at stake?
What went wrong with Argo AI is the wrong question. Rather: What’s up with Argo’s investors? What outcome did investors Ford and Volkswagen expect? Were they prepared to play the long game? Most important, do they understand what it takes to build a highly automated vehicle that’s both sexy and safe?
As the enthusiasm of its largest investors–Ford and Volkswagen–for autonomous vehicles waned, Argo AI’s fate was sealed.