European Commission – DigitalEU (DG CONNECT)

Apply AI Sectoral Deep Dive - Mobility, Transport, and Automotive

The European Commission hosted a sectoral deep‑dive on AI in mobility, transport and automotive, outlining how the newly launched Apply AI strategy seeks to embed artificial intelligence across the EU’s transport ecosystem. Speakers Max Lea and Jakob Lman highlighted current AI applications—from driver‑assistance and route optimisation to smart electrification and over‑the‑air vehicle updates—while stressing that Europe is falling behind the United States and China in deploying fully autonomous vehicles. Key insights included three strategic pillars: moving AI from experimentation to large‑scale deployment, achieving European scale and technological sovereignty, and establishing trust through regulation and city‑level pilots. The discussion identified regulatory complexity, fragmented data access, and insufficient cloud‑AI infrastructure as primary barriers. To overcome these, the EU plans cross‑border regulatory harmonisation, the creation of European mobility data spaces and data labs for privacy‑preserving model training, and massive public‑private investment in AI factories, chips, and software stacks. Notable examples underscored the urgency: Max described future cars as "software‑defined supercomputers on wheels" capable of OTA updates and level‑four/‑five autonomy, while Jakob cited the Netherlands’ autonomous‑vehicle safety benchmark—matching a driving‑instructor’s skill—to illustrate safety gains. The speakers also referenced the Autonomous Drive Ambition Cities initiative, which will pair European OEMs, mobility providers and city authorities to transition autonomous shuttles from testbeds to full‑scale services. The implications are clear: without coordinated action, Europe risks losing industrial value, talent and market share to overseas competitors. A sovereign AI stack, unified data frameworks, and city‑level pilots are essential to boost safety, sustainability and competitiveness, positioning the EU as a leader in next‑generation mobility.