Volkswagen has begun real-world testing of its Gen.Urban autonomous research vehicle on the streets of Wolfsburg, Germany, as announced in mid-December 2025.
This marks a new phase where the vehicle drives autonomously in urban traffic after prior closed-course trials. The Gen.Urban is a purpose-built prototype without a traditional steering wheel or pedals, designed to study passenger experiences in fully self-driving cars—focusing on trust, interaction, comfort, and user behavior rather than just technical performance.
Tests occur on a fixed ~10 km about 6-mile route through Wolfsburg’s city center, including intersections, roundabouts, residential areas, and construction zones. Rides last around 20 minutes. An interdisciplinary team (designers, human factors experts, engineers) collects data on how people including employees initially behave and feel.
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Questions include time spent during rides, interaction needs especially for children or elderly, and building trust via AI-assisted features. Passengers customize settings (temperature, lighting, seating) via app or onboard. The vehicle greets users, auto-adjusts seats, and uses AI for personalized displays with visuals, light, and sound.
A trained safety driver monitors from the passenger seat and can intervene via a joystick panel. Current phase with VW Group employees lasts several weeks; it’s a research project, not a production vehicle. This complements VW’s autonomous efforts, like the upcoming ID.Buzz AD robotaxi planned for commercial use in 2026+, but Gen.Urban emphasizes human-centered design for future interiors across VW brands.
Dr. Nikolai Ardey, Head of Volkswagen Group Innovation, stated: “The technology for autonomous driving is making rapid progress. With our Gen.Urban research vehicle, we want to understand exactly how passengers experience autonomous driving… The key to a positive customer experience is to build trust.”
This development highlights VW’s push toward user-centric autonomous mobility, positioning it in the growing robotaxi and self-driving space.Images of the Gen.Urban prototype show its sleek, sensor-equipped design tailored for urban autonomy.
Volkswagen’s mid-December 2025 launch of real-world testing for the Gen.Urban research vehicle in Wolfsburg marks a significant step in human-centered autonomous vehicle development. While not a production model, this prototype—designed without a steering wheel or pedals—focuses on passenger experience, trust-building, and interaction in fully self-driving urban environments.
Advancement in User-Centric Autonomous Design
The Gen.Urban shifts emphasis from pure technical autonomy to how passengers feel and behave in driverless vehicles. Building trust through AI-personalized interiors. Understanding needs across demographics.
Time usage during rides (work, relaxation, entertainment).
Insights from this testing will directly influence future interior and UX concepts across Volkswagen Group brands (VW, Audi, Porsche, etc.). This addresses a critical barrier to AV adoption: public anxiety over relinquishing control.
The project complements VW’s broader strategy: ID.Buzz AD planned for commercial ride-hailing via MOIA and partnerships like Uber, starting testing in late 2025 and passenger services in 2026 initially US, then Europe. Gen.Urban’s findings on passenger comfort will inform these production vehicles, accelerating VW’s goal of scalable Mobility-as-a-Service (MaaS).
This positions VW in the competitive robotaxi race against Tesla (Cybercab), Waymo, and Cruise, emphasizing volume manufacturing and urban practicality. Testing occurs under Germany’s progressive framework updated 2021–2022, allowing Level 4 autonomy in defined areas with a technical supervisor here, a safety driver with joystick.
Real urban trials including intersections, construction validate systems in complex environments, paving the way for driverless operations. Germany’s leadership in EU AV regulations gives VW a home advantage for data collection and iteration.
Redefining Vehicle Interiors — Without controls, cabins become lounges, enabling new layouts for productivity or relaxation.
Helps VW catch up in software-defined vehicles amid challenges in China and EV transitions.
Empirical data on trust could influence global standards and accelerate adoption, potentially reducing accidents— human error causes ~90% currently and enabling inclusive mobility Still research-focused; full commercialization depends on scaling trust, regulatory expansions, and integration with fleets like Uber.
The Gen.Urban testing underscores VW’s commitment to trust-first autonomy, potentially shaping the future of urban mobility beyond technology alone.