Volkswagen CEO Herbert Diess said the company was planning “big moves” in China.
The world’s second largest automaker is strengthening operations in its largest market to keep pace with fast-growing Chinese automakers and rapidly changing customer preferences.
“We’re going to make some major investments in China,” Des said in a newspaper. Interview published Tuesday on LinkedIn. “In a few years, we will have several thousand software workers in China.”
During the interview with Zhang Cheng, CEO of CARIAD China, Volkswagen’s in-house software arm, Diess highlighted Volkswagen’s need to keep pace with the Chinese market and invest in its local operations.
Dies said that increasing its presence in China would help Volkswagen to respond quickly to changes in the local market, particularly in two critical areas: self-driving technology and in-car user experience, “which in China is really different and sophisticated.”
He noted consumer demand for sound systems designed for karaoke, an “indoor camera for taking pictures” and streaming capabilities.
“We actually came to the conclusion, a few years ago, that developing this in Europe for China would not work,” said Dies. “We have to do it there.”
