VW wants to take over German Argo employees

Autonomous test VW in Hamburg

Volkswagen wants to take over the workforce of the German joint venture from Argo AI.

(Photo: Argo AI)

Dusseldorf, Berlin The carmaker Volkswagen wants to take over the workforce of the German joint venture from Argo AI. Up to 224 employees would be taken on, the Handelsblatt learned from corporate circles. Thomas Sedran, CEO of the IT subsidiary Cariad, named this number at a staff meeting on Wednesday. Argo AI specializes in the fields of artificial intelligence (AI) and autonomous driving.

In addition to the Wolfsburg-based company, the US carmaker Ford was also involved in the company, which employed more than 2,000 people worldwide at its peak. Last October, however, the manufacturers announced the end of Argo, the development of self-driving cars had taken longer than planned.

However, VW is not giving up hope for driverless vehicles: Automated driving will make traffic safer and more comfortable, said Sedran at the event. “That’s why we’re investing in expanding our skills in the development of automated driving experiences.”

German Argo employees: Cariad board member Sedran wanted to end the stalemate earlier

Most recently, around 280 employees worked at the Munich-based branch. Among them are many software engineers, data analysts and AI experts – talents that are desperately needed in the automotive industry. An offer will now be made to you.

Cariad manager Sedran would have ended the hanging game for the employees earlier. However, since VW and the employees will also take over parts of the joint venture Argo AI GmbH, the deal must be registered with the antitrust authorities. Sedran said the transaction could be completed in the third quarter if the competition authorities gave their approval.

In the USA, Ford had quickly given the Argo developers the prospect of continued employment. According to information from the Handelsblatt, as of December, more than 500 Argo employees accepted the offer.

>> Read also: Volkswagen upset Argo AI software experts

Nothing happened on the German side for a long time. Although VW also made promises in this country. “We are pleased to announce that your employment relationship will not be interrupted,” the company said in an internal memo. Again and again the option was raised that VW completely take over the independent company.

However, there are tax reasons against this: These would lead to a burden in the tens of millions, according to group circles.

New VW boss Blume: strategy shift in autonomous driving

VW’s stake in Argo was engineered by then-Volkswagen boss Herbert Diess. His successor Oliver Blume canceled the project as one of his first official acts. At the end of the commitment, Blume recently said in the Handelsblatt: “I’m getting rid of topics that aren’t successful before I keep putting money into them for years. I’m consistent there.”

Ford boss Jim Hackett, Argo CEO Bryan Salesky, VW boss Diess (from left, 2019)

A few years ago, the managers acted as one entity.

(Photo: Johannes Eisele/AFP/Getty Images)

After withdrawing from Argo, the group is currently reorganizing its strategy in the area of ​​autonomous driving. In future, all brands are to be linked more closely to the Cariad software unit during development. This also includes the VW commercial vehicle subsidiary, which has so far worked independently on robotic taxis.

>> Read also: Interview with VW boss Blume: All power goes to the brands

In China, Cariad is also to advance the development of autonomous driving together with the Chinese AI start-up Horizon Robotics, in the rest of the world with Bosch. In addition, there are always rumors that VW could deepen its cooperation with the Israeli specialist company Mobileye. Mobileye CEO Amnon Shashua told the “Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung” in January: “I think more information will come in the next few months or weeks.”

For Cariad, autonomous driving is the next endurance test. In the subsidiary, the group had bundled the experts from its individual brands to develop software for operating its cars. However, the task turns out to be more complex than expected. Audi, Porsche and the core brand VW had to postpone the launch of some important models because the software is not ready.

With the IT experts from Argo, the crisis-ridden software subsidiary Cariad is now to be strengthened in terms of personnel. The group has just bundled its recruiting activities in the tech sector and launched a hiring offensive. Cariad alone is currently looking for more than 1700 software talents.

The success of the entire VW group depends on the well-being of the software division. Observers had expected a purchase of further parts of Argo. With the takeover of the employees, Cariad now finds a smaller solution.

More: So Oliver Blume now wants to clean up the software chaos

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