The "Strategic Alliance for Automated Mobility" was established in 2023 to create a stakeholder network and a cooperation structure with stakeholders from industry, research and the public sector on the topic of automated mobility in Austria. The Alliance is a holistic cooperation in the field of automated mobility, in which the stakeholders are willing to actively participate and contribute to the realisation of automated mobility within a sustainable transport system.
The common vision of the Strategic Alliance for Automated Mobility, which was already formulated in 2023, is
1) the best possible use of automated mobility in Austria and
2) to achieve technological leadership in Austria.
The main pillars of the Strategic Alliance are
1) Strategic orientation and alignment
2) Knowledge transfer and competence building
3) Participation in committees and other platforms
4) Networking and matchmaking.
In line with these visions and pillars, further collaboration and exchange between the stakeholders of the Strategic Alliance took place in workshops in 2024.
In 2024, collaboration and networking among national stakeholders in the Strategic Alliance for Automated Mobility continued to expand, with an increased focus on knowledge transfer and exchange. A total of five workshops were held in various cities across Austria, hosted by key alliance members, including Automobil-Cluster Oberösterreich in Linz, AVL in Graz, SURAAA in Pörtschach, Carinthia, and AIT in Vienna. These workshops focused on key aspects such as use cases and cross-cutting topics related to automated mobility, international knowledge exchange, building up expertise, and discussions on current developments and research priorities.
In the course of the 2024 workshops, the Strategic Alliance addressed use cases as an overarching topic. Initial proposals for a structure to describe the use cases were developed by selected stakeholders in the domains of personal mobility, freight mobility and industrial machines. Based on these proposals, a common structure for describing the use cases was subsequently formulated. In a subsequent workshop, the use cases were presented and discussed in a large group. This exchange facilitated a structured matchmaking process, allowing stakeholders to indicate their level of engagement—whether they wished to stay informed or actively contribute. This was followed by a presentation of contributions for specific use cases, fostering an exchange and transfer of knowledge among the actors of the alliance.
A key discussion point among stakeholders in the workshops was the role of cross-cutting topics essential for the successful implementation of automated mobility. These included digital infrastructure, service operations, fleet management, deployment, assessment and validation, as well as mapping and localization.
The workshops first focused on identifying the most critical topics for advancing automated mobility in Austria. Each topic was then evaluated based on its contribution to Austria’s technological leadership and its relevance to the Strategic Alliance’s activities—whether stakeholders should monitor developments, actively participate, or take the lead in development and implementation.
In a follow-up workshop, stakeholders mapped out their areas of expertise and identified existing networks and collaborations related to each topic. This process helped identify gaps on certain topics in Austria and highlighted opportunities for future collaboration and knowledge exchange with national and international stakeholders.
A key focus of the workshops was fostering both national and international knowledge transfer and building up expertise among stakeholders. The workshops not only served as a platform for continuous exchange within the Strategic Alliance but also provided valuable insights from international experts. Presentations on developments in automated mobility in Switzerland and Germany, particularly in Hamburg, helped identify potential areas for future collaboration, such as cross-border operations and further discussions on deployment and scaling strategies.
In addition to knowledge sharing, the workshops facilitated discussions on relevant current and future developments in automated mobility. The Alliance stakeholders also had the opportunity to discuss and exchange views on current and future research priorities, in particular in the context of activities at European level (CCAM partnership). Stakeholders were able to contribute what they consider to be relevant research questions and priorities in the field of automated mobility.
As part of the Mobilitätswende funding call in spring 2024, a mobilization and networking initiative to support an Alliance for Automated Mobility was started. This initiative aims to enhance knowledge and experience exchange, strengthen Austria’s positioning both nationally and internationally—especially within the context of European initiatives—and support the development of strategies and roadmaps with input from key stakeholders. The consortium led by biz-up (Business Upper Austria), which was awarded funding as part of the tender, began managing the corresponding activities for the Strategic Alliance for Automated Mobility at the start of 2025.
<<Previous Article Next Article>>
