Industry Event The Autonomous 2025 "The Game-Changer: Removing the Human From the Equation"

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On September 17 and 18, 2025, Vienna was all about safe autonomous and software-defined mobility. For the sixth time, the industry event "The Autonomous" took place at the Hofburg. The conclusion: Autonomy is no longer a vision but already influences reality today. However, safety is the challenge to bringing fully automated and autonomous vehicles to the road.

For the sixth time, the industry event "The Autonomous" was held in the Austrian capital – this time with two new features. 400 participants (in-person and digital) and 230 involved companies took part in an event that now looks beyond the automotive sector and expands into areas where safety and robustness play an equally important role. One such field is robotics. “The Autonomous is about shaping the future of autonomous mobility. Now, we are expanding this vision. Through cross-industry collaboration, we aim to shape the future of autonomous systems across all sectors,” explained Ricky Hudi, Chairman of "The Autonomous." “We are convinced that scaling robotics requires the same foundations as scaling autonomous automotive systems. This is why we founded The Autonomous organization – a truly open and neutral platform.” Founding members include TTTech Auto, NXP, Infineon, and the TTTech Group.

Safe Autonomy Is the Key

“Autonomy is no longer a vision but is already influencing our world today,” stated Susanne Einzinger, head of The Autonomous, during the opening. Hudi added, “Safety and security are not topics where we should compete. These topics should not only be our collective focus, but we must and should work closely together here.” The event kicked off with a fireside chat featuring Georg Kopetz, CEO of TTTech Group, Kurt Sievers, CEO of NXP, Jens Kötz, Head of Architecture, Energy, Security/Safety Development at Audi, and Young Sohn, founding member of Walden Catalyst Ventures. The discussion focused on how software and AI-defined autonomy can not only be made safe but also scalable. Key points included Edge AI, the integration of semiconductors and software, business models, and how Europe can balance innovation, regulations, and sovereignty.

Subsequently, the discussion shifted to the technical level: The first panel discussion focused on the end-to-end architecture of AD systems – from sensor to actuator. This is because every component, from perception technologies and deterministic computing to fault-tolerant actuation, must be seamlessly integrated to meet the demands of real-world applications. Sensor fusion, real-time data processing, and fail-operational architectures play a crucial role in safely implementing autonomy levels. “Safety is the most important challenge that makes autonomous driving possible. There can be no compromises here,” emphasized Stefan Poledna, CEO and CTO of TTTech Auto.

From Software-Defined to AI-Defined Vehicle

Nowadays, not only the software-defined vehicle (SDV) but also the AI-defined vehicle is a widely discussed topic. However, does the latter actually replace the SDV? “We don’t see the AI-defined vehicle replacing the SDV. We see it more as an evolution driven by a data-based rather than a rule-based architecture,” explained Yuping Wang of Carizon. He cited an example of an AI-based safety system being able to recognize a school bus parked on the side of the road and provide a warning to the driver to slow down because children might emerge from behind the bus. As the example shows, safety has arrived in the realm of AI, but security might become an issue, as Ronan Smoly, CEO of PlaxidityX, emphasized: “It is not yet widely understood that hackers can take control of AI. Cars are part of a highly integrated system – from the automaker and supplier to the component manufacturer, software provider, and dealer – and the easiest way to penetrate this network is the vehicle.” This is an important point. If AI-based vehicles can be hacked, public trust in AI will suffer significantly, as Lars Reger, CTO of NXP, also underlined in his keynote: “If the AI in my autonomous vehicle started driving unpredictably, my children wouldn’t be traveling alone in it anymore. Trust is the factor that will either enable or prevent a respective market for autonomous vehicles.”

Trust is good, but control is no longer possible in an autonomous vehicle. Therefore, the current phantom braking incidents – unexpected and unnecessary braking events, which Tesla in particular has been struggling with recently – are a massive problem, as Missy Cummings, professor at George Mason University, explained. “We have a huge problem – automated vehicles that hallucinate.” Automated vehicles are unable to intuitively grasp safety-critical scenarios like humans. “Neural networks know nothing on their own, they can’t independently understand, imagine, or think. And all end-to-end learning doesn’t solve the problem. There are no autonomous vehicles today – they all need a human babysitter.”

Legislation and Regulations

Tensions rose during Panel Discussion Number 3, which bore the promising title "The Regulatory Roadmap to Autonomous Vehicles: Between Safety and Innovation." Legislation plays a crucial role on the path to automated and autonomous driving. Safety remains the order of the day, but overly strict regulations could hinder new developments and innovations. On the other hand, the lack of clear guidelines could delay the introduction of new systems. The crux lies in the fact that each country is pursuing its own agenda. Finding a common denominator is key, as Richard Damm, President and Chair of the German Federal Motor Transport Authority and UNECE, emphasized: “All countries have the same goal: safety. We need to find ways to work together to create a common foundation for the regulations of each country. This should not be a matter of competition.” Bolin Zhou, senior engineer at Catarc (China Auto Standardization Research Institute), could only partially agree. While he emphasized that China is contributing to UNECE, it is doing so at its usual rapid and formidable "China Speed." “And that is faster than UNECE.” This may be true, but it also underscores that achieving consensus will be challenging.

New Focus: Robotics

Robotics was one of the buzzwords at this year's event, and the final roundtable was dedicated to this topic. Unsurprisingly, it impacts various applications – from autonomous vehicles and aviation to smart cities, medical electronics, and precision agriculture. While there is more flexibility in areas like agriculture compared to the automotive sector, aviation proves to be particularly challenging. Fundamentally, Muneyb Minhazuddin from Ambarella stated: “As soon as humans come into play, it’s about safety, regulations, and everything related to that. In a pure machine-to-machine environment, you can design your autonomous system from scratch.” This would likely be the ultimate game-changer – removing humans, the number one risk factor, from the equation. (se)