Audi, Italdesign and Airbus combine self-driving car and passenger drone

At the Geneva Motor Show, Audi, Italdesign and Airbus are presenting "Pop.Up Next", an entirely electric, fully automatic concept for horizontal and vertical mobility.

In the distant future this vehicle could transport people in cities quickly and conveniently on the road and in the air, at the same time solving traffic problems. The dominant interior feature is a 49-inch screen, while interaction between humans and the machine is performed by speech and face recognition, eye-tracking and a touch function.

The ultra-light, two-seater passenger cabin can be attached either to a car module or to a flight module. Audi is supporting the project with know-how on battery technology and automation.

"Creativity is needed where new mobility concepts for cities and people's diverse needs are concerned. Italdesign is an incubator for innovative technologies and radical prototyping. Pop.Up Next is an ambitious vision that could permanently change our urban life in the future," said Dr. Bernd Martens, Audi Board Member for Procurement and President of Italdesign.

Italdesign develops future-oriented vehicle concepts for Audi and customers around the globe. Jörg Astalosch, CEO of Italdesign, said: "Various players will define the rules of urban mobility in the future. We are proud to collaborate with Airbus, the leading company in the aerospace industry, to investigate solutions for future mobility." Astalosch sees Pop.Up Next as a flexible on-demand concept that could open up mobility in the third dimension to people in cities. Italdesign is making use of a network of cities, universities and various stakeholders in order to better anticipate the future of mobility in cities.A first version of Pop.Up already had its premiere at the Geneva Autosalon a year ago.