---
title: "Volkswagen to Start Testing Its Adorable Self-Driving Vans"
description: "Volkswagen says it will start testing two of its self-driving ID Buzz electric vans in Austin by the end of July."
date: "2023-07-09"
modified: "2023-07-09"
authors:
  - name: "Frank Landymore"
    job_title: "Contributing Writer"
    link: "https://futurism.com/authors/flandymore"
url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/volkswagen-testing-self-driving-vans-texas"
categories:
  - "Advanced Transport"
  - "Self-Driving Vehicles"
tags:
  - "Self-driving cars"
  - "the digest"
  - "volkswagen"
---

# Volkswagen to Start Testing Its Adorable Self-Driving Vans

![Volkswagen says it will start testing two of its self-driving ID Buzz electric vans in Austin by the end of July.](<https://futurism.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/volkswagen-testing-self-driving-vans-texas.jpg>)
*\<em\>Image: Volkswagen\</em\>*

## Van Life

Volkswagen [announced](<https://www.cnbc.com/2023/07/06/volkswagen-mobileye-autonomous-vehicle-tests-to-launch-in-austin.html>) on Thursday that it will debut its first stateside self-driving program in Austin, Texas. It's the latest attempt from the German automaker to get a foothold in the autonomous vehicle market, especially in the US, after its previous ventures [all but fizzled out](<https://www.cnn.com/2022/10/26/business/ford-argo-ai-vw-shut-down/index.html>).

Spearheading Volkswagen's rejuvenated effort will be its quirky [ID Buzz](<https://www.theverge.com/2023/6/2/23745742/vw-id-buzz-long-wheelbase-microbus-us-specs-photos>) electric van, a spiritual successor to the iconic Microbus — the charming, reliable old van stereotypically favored by hippies.

Ten of these ID Buzz electric vans will roam the streets of Austin by the end of the year, Volkswagen said, but it'll kick things off with just two vans, which will start testing sometime this July.

But given the [sheer amount](<https://futurism.com/the-byte/self-driving-car-plowed-into-active-fire-scene>) of [chaos](<https://futurism.com/the-byte/self-driving-car-runs-over-dog>) self-driving cars by VW's US-based competitors have already caused on public roads, not to mention the company's past failed attempts, VW still has plenty to prove, and there's no guarantee that its vans will perform smoothly.

## Swing and a Miss

For several years, Volkswagen has already been testing a variety of self-driving vans in Germany [through its ridesharing service Moia](<https://www.theverge.com/2016/12/5/13843366/volkswagen-moia-berlin-autonomous-on-demand-car>). In 2019, the company had hoped that a partnership with the startup Argo AIk, which Ford also invested in, could launch its self-driving capabilities to greater heights.

But in late 2022, both automakers [abruptly pulled out](<https://techcrunch.com/2022/10/26/ford-vw-backed-argo-ai-is-shutting-down/>), and Argo AI, which for years was considered a leader in self-driving, unceremoniously shuttered its operations.

Now, Volkswagen is placing its faith in the Jerusalem-based autonomous driving company Mobileye.

However, this time around, Volkswagen has no plans to use its own ridesharing service to deploy the ID Buzz, and instead hopes to sell its fleet to other companies.

## Following Suit

Like many self-driving vehicles, the ID Buzz will come with radar, LIDAR, and camera systems to help it "see."

To avoid their escapades from going off the rails, the vans will be "geolocked" to certain, carefully mapped locations in the city, Volkswagen said, and for worst-case scenarios, a human employee will sit in the driver's seat for the sake of safety.

For an idea of how this could all play out, see the attempts by General Motors and ride-hailing company Waymo [at deploying self-driving taxis](<https://futurism.com/the-byte/gm-robotaxis-fares>) in San Francisco.

GM's clumsy little cabs in particular have made the news more for their [embarrassing behavior](<https://futurism.com/the-byte/group-robotaxis-shut-down-stopping-traffic>) and [comical run-ins with cops](<https://futurism.com/the-byte/video-police-pulling-over-self-driving-taxi>) than for being competent drivers.

The jury is out on whether Volkswagen's vans will fare any better, but the automaker optimistically plans to branch out to at least four more cities in the next three years.

**More on self-driving:** *[Self-Driving Car Runs Over Dog](<https://futurism.com/the-byte/self-driving-car-runs-over-dog>)*

## Author
At Futurism, my work has often centered on bringing a sense of clarity and insight to complex topics ranging from the regulation of emerging technologies to the esoteric ideologies of Silicon Valley executives, while striving not to lose the poetic sense of awe inspired by often-obscure fields like astrophysics and quantum computing. I broke the story of CNET using AI to produce articles that turned out to be riddled with factual errors and plagiarism — a dam-breaking inflection point, as I've reported, that's inspired copycats and endless discourse while beguiling stakeholders ranging from tech giants to purveyors of spam around the web. My work at Futurism has been cited by publications including CBS News, the Los Angeles Times, Vice, Gizmodo, Engadget, the Verge, and Vanity Fair. I grew up in locales ranging from India to China, and now live in the exotic suburbs of Virginia. In my free time, I'm an avid reader of weird sci-fi literature, an aficionado of East Asian cinema, and, regrettably, a relapsed gamer. Allegedly, I’m working on a debut novel, currently untitled.

### Author social links  
[Bluesky](<https://bsky.app/profile/f-w-l.bsky.social>)