This summer, Airbus will begin offering ground transportation in Audi vehicles to customers of its on-demand helicopter service Voom in São Paulo and Mexico City, allowing customers to have a seamless travel experience. The partnership is emblematic of a larger alliance between the two companies, which are collaborating on developing “Pop Up,” a full electric autopiloted and modular concept that includes a capsule connected to either ground or air module.

“The Audi Group is committed to improving mobility in cities by introducing smart, innovative ideas. To find the best solutions for our customers, we therefore showed in 2018 the first modular system for urban air mobility together with Airbus and our subsidiary Italdesign,” said Audi CEO Rupert Stadler.   

Independent of its Audi alliance, Airbus is working to create a variety of new urban electric vertical takeoff and landing designs including the four-passenger CityAirbus, scheduled for first flight late this year, and the Vahana, which first flew in January and is suitable for cargo or single passengers.

In Singapore, the company is working with the country’s National University on the Skyways project to test a parcel transportation system using autonomous drones. “The world is rapidly urbanizing, and ground infrastructure alone cannot meet the demands of tomorrow," said Airbus CEO Tom Enders.