Vay and ioki: Targeting the world’s first remotely controlled on-demand service

Vay and ioki aim to bring cost-efficient and digital on-demand mobility services to the streets with jointly developed tele-driving technology in the future. In practice, this would look like the user of the on-demand service – as is currently practiced – requesting a vehicle via the app. Controlled from the tele-driving center, this vehicle would arrive shortly thereafter. The algorithm developed by ioki calculates the route and enables ride-pooling. ioki Platform serves as the booking interface for the users.

“I am convinced that tele-driving is a promising key technology to gradually introduce driverless driving in public transport. With Vay, we have a strong partner who shares our vision of driverless, everyday-integrated mobility,” said Michael Barillère-Scholz, CEO and co-founder of ioki GmbH, about the cooperation.

Supplementing Demand-Responsive Transport and Avoiding Empty Runs

The algorithm of ioki individually decides whether users ride in a regular vehicle or in a tele-operated vehicle. Looking ahead, the tele-operated on-demand service could supplement existing demand-responsive transport and thus avoid empty runs. This allows costs to be reduced while simultaneously increasing the availability of public transport. Additionally, this could counteract the driver shortage in the public transport sector.

“With our door-to-door mobility service enabled by our tele-driving technology, we aim to create an affordable and convenient alternative for traffic in metropolitan areas. ioki's innovative platform solution accelerates the introduction of our sustainable and efficient mobility services for public transport. Together, we are working towards our goal of significantly reducing the number of private cars in cities,” says Fabrizio Scelsi, co-founder and CTO of Vay.

Vay and ioki are currently in contact with interested transport companies to test the combination of on-demand and tele-operated technology. The first pilot projects could start next year.

About ioki 

ioki is a leading European technology company for digital mobility and a pioneer for autonomous driving in public transport. Since the company's founding in 2017, companies, cities, and municipalities in eleven countries have utilized ioki's expertise. With more than 130 flexible demand-responsive transport services and over 4.5 million passengers, ioki is the market leader for on-demand mobility in the DACH region. This includes flagship projects like ioki Hamburg (now hvv hop) and Germany's first autonomous line bus.

The company offers innovative platform solutions for area and line transport, data-based traffic planning, and digital navigation applications for line operations. With its software-as-a-service and consulting services, ioki enables digitally supported solutions for a sustainable mobility transition. 190 employees from over 20 nations work for ioki in Frankfurt.