Brussels, Belgium, 25 November 2025 After four and a half years of pioneering research and large-scale testing, the European flagship project Hi-Drive concludes with a Final Event at AutoWorld in Brussels on 25 November 2025. This one-day exhibition and conference celebrates the successful completion of a €60 million initiative co-funded by the European Union under Horizon 2020, bringing together 53 partners from leading automotive manufacturers, suppliers, research institutions, and user organizations.

The event will feature 29 exhibits, including 16 research and prototype vehicles, 5 simulators, multiple demonstrators and themed exhibition booths, complemented by presentations, panel discussions and the opportunity to interact with some of Europe’s top experts in automated driving.

The Hi-Drive exhibition will remain on display as the backdrop for the EUCAR Annual Reception and Conference, which follows immediately after. This partnership ensures that Hi-Drive’s achievements are showcased to a broad audience of industry leaders, policymakers, and researchers during one of Europe’s most influential automotive R&D gatherings.

Showcasing the Future of Mobility

The Hi-Drive Final Event exhibition is organized around three thematic topics that reflect the project’s core achievements.

• Vehicles, Enablers & Operations

Hi-Drive has paved the way for advanced vehicle automation by addressing the fragmentation and extension of Operational Design Domains (ODDs). Building on the foundations of L3Pilot, the project introduced modular technology enablers in V2X communication, high-precision positioning, V2X cybersecurity, and machine learning, validated through extensive real-world and simulation testing. Cooperative manoeuvres via V2V and V2I, GNSS-denied positioning solutions, robust V2X cybersecurity protocols and advanced Machine Learning applications demonstrated resilience and scalability for future deployment.

These innovations were integrated into 37 prototype vehicles and evaluated during the Operations phase, where 20 teams conducted 45 operations on public roads and test tracks, complemented by simulation campaigns. In total, over 6,000 test runs across 38 use cases engaged 1,800 participants, covering all major road types—motorways, urban motorways, urban and rural roads, parking environments—and diverse weather and ODD conditions. This comprehensive testing demonstrated robustness and extended the capabilities of Automated Driving Functions (ADFs).

• Effects and Impact Assessment

Hi-Drive evaluated automated driving performance using data from 45 operations pooled in 17 use-case clusters. Results show that technology enablers significantly defragment ODDs and improve driving behavior toward greater comfort, efficiency, and safety. On top of that, Hi-Drive conducted the most comprehensive impact assessment study to date for automated driving in Europe. Based on system-level modeling using the operation data for calibration, the final socioeconomic analysis revealed benefits dominated by safety and user comfort, resulting in a positive benefit-cost ratio.

• Users

Safe and intuitive interaction with Connected and Automated Vehicles (CAVs) is essential for public acceptance. Hi-Drive gathered insights from 20,000 participants worldwide through surveys, simulators, and on-road studies to understand user needs and expectations. Safety, comfort, and the ability to engage in non-driving-related tasks emerged as key factors for adoption. Research explored driver monitoring systems, adaptive HMIs, and external communication cues (eHMIs and dHMIs) to ensure trust and smooth interaction with other road users. Innovative VR-based methods for mitigating motion sickness and frameworks for assessing comfort were developed, paving the way for inclusive and user-centric automated mobility.

NOTE TO THE EDITOR

The Hi-Drive project is an Innovation Action, co-funded by the European Union under the Horizon 2020 programme with the grant agreement number 101006664. Fifty-three organisations have committed to scientifically test and assess the impact of automated driving systems on driver comfort, safety, and traffic efficiency as part of the project.

www.hi-drive.eu | LinkedIn: company/hi-drive

Duration 53 months, starting from 1 July 2021

Total cost €60 million

EC contribution €30 million

Coordinator Volkswagen AG

Partners:

Automotive manufacturers – Volkswagen AG, AUDI AG, BMW Group, Stellantis-CRF, Ford-Werke GmbH, Honda R&D Europe (Deutschland) GmbH, Hyundai Motor Europe Technical Center GmbH, Stellantis Auto (affiliated entity LAB (Laboratoire d'Accidentologie, de Biomécanique et d’étude du Comportement Humain)), Seat, Toyota Motor Europe, Volvo Personvagnar, Volvo Technology Corporation.

Suppliers – Aptiv, Automotive Artificial Intelligence (AAI), Robert Bosch GmbH, FEV.io, NNG, Commsignia, Planung Transport Verkehr AG (PTV), Valeo (affiliated entity Valeo Schalter und Sensoren GmbH).

Research – German Aerospace Center (DLR), Institute of Communication and Computer Systems (ICCS), ika RWTH Aachen University (affiliated entity fka GmbH), Delft University of Technology, University of Leeds, Würzburg Institute for Traffic Sciences (WIVW), Institut VEDECOM, International Road Federation (IRF), Chalmers University of Technology, SNF Centre for Applied Research at NHH, Netherlands Organisation for Applied Scientific Research (TNO), University of Genova, Automotive Technology Centre of Galicia (CTAG), VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland, University of Warwick, European Center for Information and Communication Technologies (EICT)

Authorities – TÜV SÜD, The Federal Highway Research Institute (BASt)

User Groups – Federation Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA), in association with third parties: Mobilité Club France, Allgemeiner Deutscher Automobil-Club (ADAC), Automobile Club d’Italia (ACI), Avto-Moto Zveza Slovenije (AMZS), Koninklijke Nederlandse Toeristenbond (ANWB), Automobile and Touring Club of Finland (AL), Hrvatski Autoklub (HAK), IAM Roadsmart (IAM), Magyar Autoklub (MAK), Royal Automobile Club de Belgique (RACB) and Reial Automobil Club de Catalunya (RACC)

Project coordinator

Volkswagen Group Research

Aria Etemad

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Press contact

European Center for Information and Communication Technologies – EICT

Philippe Stehlik

+49 175 1816448

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About fka

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The team is inspired by a passion for efficient, safe and fascinating mobility. As one of the first companies on the Aachen campus, the spin-off of the Institute for Automotive Engineering of the RWTH Aachen University demonstrated entrepreneurial foresight.

Interdisciplinary expertise in all aspects of mobility and technological visions, combined with the advantages of the inspiringly creative location, are fka's fuel. Ideas, innovations and unique methodological expertise are shaped into well-founded and secured solutions that give fka's customers the necessary edge in a wide range of issues.

A complete spectrum of services, ranging from consulting and conception to simulation and design, prototype construction and experimental testing, forms the basis for this.

With the credo "creating ideas & driving innovations", the team constantly has the mobility of the future in mind.

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