Apex.AI Operating System To Run Volkswagen Robo Ridepooling Vans

A smartphone without iOS or Android operating systems is just a phone without its smarts. Technically, it’s called middleware which is like a middle man between the device and its applications so everything works correctly.

On Thursday, Palo Alto, Calif.-based Apex.AI announced its middleware system is going into production in autonomous vans being developed by Volkswagen Group’s commercial vehicles division’s MOIA ridepooling service.

In this case, Apex.AI’s operating system is equivalent to iOS or Android on a smartphone, only it will run things on MOIA’s robo ridepooling vehicles.

“So iOS would be the middleware on the on the vehicle. The middleware is the vehicle operating system, so all the software that runs as a base software on that ECU (electronic control unit),” explained Jan Becker, CEO, Apex.AI in an interview. “MOIA is actually relying on our software and our expertise to develop their vehicle software, and that is not just a research activity, but that this software will actually run in production on the MOIA vehicles, which are going to launch in a couple of years with autonomous ride hailing service.”

Essentially, the passenger management system accesses the vehicle’s interior safety monitoring system, takes over the opening and closing of the doors or, if necessary, controls the various other functions in the vehicle interior, according to the companies.

“The acceptance of autonomous ridepooling depends to a large extent on whether people trust such a service in every situation. A high-performance passenger management system is a key prerequisite for using intelligent, self-driving vehicles to establish a mobility service that our passengers can rely on. The development of our passenger management system using Apex.AI’s middleware is the ideal basis for this,” said Sascha Meyer, CEO, MOIA, in a statement.

MOIA’s near-term goal is to develop Europe’s first type-certified AD-mobility as a service (MaaS) system and successfully launch an integrated autonomous, scalable ridepooling system on the road in Hamburg, Germany after 2025, although the company has its sights on expanding internationally.

Apex.AI and MOIA have been working together on the project since 2021, Becker said, but only now making the relationship public because its system is going into production with “a major European manufacturer.”

For Apex.AI Thursday’s announcement represents the next major step in the tech company’s growth and development.

Becker emphasizes his company’s operating systems are not limited to use in autonomous vehicles but also support “all software applications of vehicles including advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) as well as software for electric, connected and shared vehicles.

In December, 2021, Apex.AI announced it had raised $56.5 million in a Series B funding round. That financial infusion has been put to work to expand the company’s staffing and global footprint beyond its current facilities in Palo Alto, Calif, and Munich, Berlin and Stuttgart, Germany.

Since then, Apex.AI’s headcount has grown to more than 100 employees and it has opened facilities in Gothenburg, Sweden to service such companies as Volvo Cars, Volvo Group, ABB, Scania and several robotics companies, Becker said.

Apex.AI also opened offices in Tokyo, Japan and Seoul, South Korea.

While the deal with VW Commercial Vehicles’ MOIA for its robo ridepooling vehicles is indeed an important win for Apex.AI, Becker notes the development and expansion of autonomous commercial trucks looks to be the next significant growth opportunity for his company’s technology—middleware that works in the middle of everything, including the phone on which you may be reading this story.

“So our software is really as generic as can be like iOS on a phone or Android on the phone,” said Becker. “You can have any application on top any any any app you want.”