Two events in two cities in the same week and both focused on the subject of mobility. In Paris, Autonomy is held in the historical setting of the Grand Halle de La Villette. It describes itself as the first global event on the subject for innovators, corporations, policy makers, media and urbanites. Now in its third year, it concentrates on mobility innovations for city dwellers and features roundtables and keynotes from CEOs, policymakers, disrupters and experts.
It’s also got its fair share of startups showing off their services in the exhibition zone. One of them is Volocopter, which is encouraging visitors to step inside its futuristic air taxi. It announced at Autonomy that it will be performing its next set of inner urban flight tests in Singapore in the second half of next year. Other startups in attendance are Moovit, Cityscoot, Wallbox and Izivia.
Meanwhile in Munich, eMove360° calls itself ‘the world’s biggest B2B trade fair for electric mobility and autonomous driving’. It has a broader remit than Autonomy. Its focus areas are: vehicles (electric, connected, autonomous), charging and energy, infotainment and connectivity, as well as urban and mobile design, materials and engineering.
It’s also focuses on what it calls mobility 4.0. Christian Bangemann from the automotive consultants Berylls Strategy Advisors pointed out that eMove360°:”Gives very practical informations such as: how can I get a charging station in my private garage or where is the next e-carsharing possibility? Mobility 4.0 is no longer for clients of big enterprises.”
The Bavarian event wants to be more than just a trade fair for Germans. It says that around 40 percent of the 300+ exhibitors have headquarters outside of Germany. it all features its fair share of startups such as e.GO.
So how did the two events shape up?
Our reporter in Munich, Frank Horlbeck says he really enjoyed eMove360° and it got him thinking about his own modes of transport. “On the way back, with all the new e-cars, e-bikes and new thoughts in my head I wondered how long my Audi turbo diesel will remain my best friend on the autobahn. E-mobility is a reality so maybe it’s time to change. The new Audi e-tron SUV, for example, has a driving range of over 310 miles. Or maybe I’ll just hire an e-scooter for downtown. We will see.”
As for Paris, our representative was equally effusive: “Autonomy really showed the buzz and boom of the industry by highlighting the diversity of players and how everything is interconnected. It’s not just about the automotive industry anymore or the car itself – mobility crosses over so many sectors and areas,” says Delano Pansi.
We’ll call that a draw then…
