Volkswagen has committed to spending tens of billions of dollars as part of a dramatic shift to electric and autonomous vehicles.
The Germany carmaker said Friday that it would spend $50 billion by 2023 to develop electric cars, self-driving vehicles and other new technology.
Speaking at a press conference following a meeting of the company’s supervisory board, CEO Herbert Diess described the company’s strategy as an “electric offensive.”
Diess acknowledged that increased investment in new technology could initially harm earnings growth.
“Volkswagen must become more efficient, more productive and more profitable in order to finance the high expenditure in the future and in order to stay competitive,” he said during the press conference.
The CEO said that Volkswagen is also “seriously considering involvement in battery production.”
Diess said that talks with US automaker Ford about a potential partnership are “progressing positively.”
“We can solve the transformation of our business more easily with partnerships. We are currently in talks with Ford about an alliance in regard to light commercial vehicles,” he said.
