Holon Benteler CEO: "The production volume for 2025 is already sold"

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The people-mover manufacturer Holon is the Benteler Group's speedboat. Its CEO Ralf Göttel reports a strong demand for the new product, the new role of suppliers, and the philosophy of not wanting to do everything themselves.

Last year, you established Holon as a brand for autonomous mobility, renaming the unit Benteler EV Systems, which was spun off at the end of 2021. Can a mobility product be better positioned in the market through a name change rather than being associated with a traditional supplier name in the automotive industry?

The change of name is part of a deliberate new setting. Such new business areas can be developed faster and more effectively in a modern start-up context than in a very organized and process-oriented corporate environment. We have therefore deliberately given the new line of business more dynamism through the organization and the setting - and also express this in the branding. At the same time, Holon can always fall back on the 25,000 employees in the Benteler Group, the enormous experience, the resources. That is a real USP for us.

During CES, they confirmed the start of production for the People Mover from 2025 in the USA. What are the sales targets of the subsidiary, especially after receiving direct feedback from potential customers at the trade show?

We have obviously addressed a niche in which there is great demand. Over the past ten years, many companies have focused on the stacks and software associated with autonomous driving. But there is simply no suitable vehicle that offers the quality and reliability for use. The production volume that we have in our business plan for 2025 has already been sold today. We are planning for 1,000 units.

But could there be more?

If you look at the response from Las Vegas, the demand figures actually far exceed our business planning. Accordingly, they may not be feasible on this scale. For example, Hamburger Hochbahn alone wants to put 1,000 of these vehicles on the roads. And so many representatives of European cities have visited us, all of whom have the same issue: They need a reliable vehicle for public transport to get started in this segment. They all need to practice here. They don't need a 40-meter bus, but smaller vehicles with a higher frequency.

Production will start in the USA. Why only there for the time being and how attractive would other markets be?

In general, we produce at the customer's premises. In the USA, this includes our partner Beep. For European demand, we would produce in Europe and for Asian demand in Asia. We are also starting production in the USA because this is where demand is greatest - particularly from the private sector.

Another major German supplier is a direct competitor and has been pursuing the matter for a bit longer. The project has not yet seen significant economic success. What makes you confident that you will be more successful?

Please understand that I do not comment on competitors' strategies and products. We are absolutely convinced by the concept of our mover - the range, the capacity, the potential speed. In general, it is certainly a sign that traditional suppliers are now stepping up to the plate. After all, the highly committed start-ups that have been active in this field to date have not had the strength or the skills to take it straight to the streets.

You also have two identical partners or customers in Germany with Hamburger Hochbahn and in the US with Beep, just like the mentioned competitor. Will the faster one prevail here?

I have a different philosophy and strategy for such projects: I believe in the sharing economy, in partnerships to build speed and expertise. The traditional German approach is: I have to do everything myself. And our market companion seems to have high expectations of developing a lot of things in-house. At Holon, we consciously work with the best partners in the industry and, where possible, already use series components, such as the sliding door or the ramp for wheelchair users. The stack is also already in use on the market. We don't have to do everything ourselves, but see ourselves as a system integrator. This speeds up innovation and implementation.

In addition to passenger transport, variants for freight transportation are also being considered. Wouldn't that be the more lucrative perspective? After all, all experts expect the rollout of autonomous vehicles, especially in freight transportation, in the USA. How far along is the product development in this area?

We have had good experience with not starting too broadly. With the current focus, we are also creating a basis for other use cases. One thing we have learned about autonomous driving is that you shouldn't plan for the most difficult scenario - i.e. autonomous driving everywhere. We start with Beep with defined residential areas, geofencing routes and repeatable driving situations. Freight transport or last-mile applications are the logical next step for this concept. This is also possible thanks to the modularity of the Holon platform. Holon always runs on the same concept and the outer skin can be adapted accordingly.

How committed are you to your current partners such as Mobileye, Cognizant, etc.? Could other companies also join in for different models?

There is no exclusivity. The circle can grow. And we are aware that partnerships evolve over the years. If a great innovation comes around the corner the day after tomorrow, it would be negligent if we didn't include it. But you also have to be able to share.

If a powerful mobility service provider in Asia were to make a very good offer to acquire the "Holon" package and thus produce their own fleet cost-effectively on site, would you be swayed?

Strategically, we don't have that on our radar. Of course, I would have to discuss a special offer with our shareholders. It would be exciting if we could accelerate distribution even further with a strong partner. I don't think we would close our minds to a coherent industrial concept.