Electric vehicle (EV) manufacturing technology company Helixx has signed an MOU with a self-driving scaleup Conigital to jointly develop a bi-directional autonomous vehicle (AV). More broadly, the partnership aims to speed up and simplify AV development, with software-led design engineering, a simplified vehicle platform architecture, and low-cost manufacturing strategies allowing rapid testing and implementation.
“The fusion of Conigital’s driverless technology suite with Helixx’s universal electric vehicle manufacturing architecture is a key development in delivering a future where sustainable urban mobility is the norm, underpinned by a core ethos that aims to advance how cities embrace transportation that offers state-of-the-art advanced driver assistance systems all the way up to full driverless mobility solutions,” said Steve Pegg, Co-founder and CEO of Helixx.
The partners are now co-developing a suite of AV software and hardware designed to deliver an “AV menu item/off-the-shelf AV” philosophy for future-proofed vehicle manufacturing systems. It will be underpinned by the Helixx proprietary “factory in a box,” to reduce the barrier to entry for electric autonomous vehicles.
By merging autonomous technology with electric vehicle innovation, the partnership strives to reduce obstacles in urban mobility. The resulting platform will serve as an agnostic framework adaptable to various AV use cases.
“Our collaboration with Helixx is a significant step towards reshaping driverless transportation technology to make it viable for future mass adoption,” said Don Dhaliwal, Founder and CEO of Conigital. “By combining the full suite of Conigitial autonomous software and hardware systems with the electric vehicle platform expertise from the visionary team at Helixx, we are creating an integrated ecosystem that merges autonomous and electric vehicles together from first principles.”
The partners say that the MOU represents a commitment to research and development on innovative approaches to harmonize driverless technology and electric vehicle platforms into one rapidly deployable approach that can be adopted anywhere in the world from the most advanced smart cities and closed-fence autonomous systems to the streets of the world’s emerging megacities.
Helixx, founded by engineer and vehicle concept designer Pegg and hypercar designers Jowyn Wong and Jakub Jodlowski, provides a platform to manufacture, supply, maintain, and recycle low-cost commercial mini EVs virtually anywhere in the world. Founded on the principles of Industry 5.0, and embracing flexibility and sustainability, the digital-first Helixx ecosystem empowers regional businesses to build white-label last-mile delivery, construction, Tuk-Tuk, and ride-hailing fleets in local, scalable licensed Helixx Mobility Hubs within a circular manufacturing ecosystem.
Following successful testing of the concept hub in Oxfordshire in partnership with Siemens, Helixx will establish further pilot hubs in the UK and Singapore. The company is in discussion with customers in the Asia Pacific region, with India, MENA, and South America to follow.
Conigital is pioneering transportation advancement through a hybrid explainable AI and simulation-first approach, creating a transparent end-to-end AI-driven system, explained Dhaliwal. The company’s team, spanning the UK, Australia, India, and Brazil, is working to accelerate Safe Autonomous Mobility (SAM) with a focus on enhancing industrial and commercial fleets within yards, airports, ports, industrial sites, and smart campuses.
Its RMTO (Remote Monitoring and Teleoperation) platform supports early commercial deployments, and its CONI AI Driver is trained in a high-fidelity simulator, cutting real-world costs and securing a leading position in driverless technology thanks to partnerships with simulation pioneers IPG Automotive.
In addition, the company’s developments are supported by collaborations with AWS (Amazon Web Services) and BT Business for cutting-edge cloud and 5G infrastructure support, respectively, and academic partnerships with Coventry University, University of Essex, and Queensland University of Technology.
