Markus Duesmann, Audi’s new CEO, wants the German manufacturer to regain its reputation as a global technology leader. For this reason, a few weeks ago, it launched the Artemis project, a division through which the German brand will more quickly develop electric vehicles equipped with advanced autonomous driving systems and other cutting-edge technologies.
With this move, Audi wants to imitate small startups’ agility and competitiveness, which are characterized by being much faster in responding to new market trends than the large traditional automotive groups. All Volkswagen Group brands will benefit from Artemis developments; in the same way, Artemis will have access to all the German giant’s resources and technologies.
Artemis’s first project will be to create a “pioneering model for Audi quickly and without bureaucracy,” in the words of Duesmann himself. Described as a ‘highly efficient electric car,’ the vehicle will hit the market in 2024 with an obvious objective: to become Audi’s new flagship, ranking one notch above the current A8.
According to the German newspaper Handelsblatt, which specializes in economics, the model will be a luxury sedan currently being developed under the provisional code “Landjet.” Possibly the last commercial name is A9 e-Tron, following the nomenclature system that Audi has been using since the mid-90s in its range.
This model will have the objective of surpassing the next Tesla Model S in aspects such as autonomy or technology, although by size the Audi proposal will be closer to the BMW i7, Cadillac Celestiq, Jaguar XJ, and Mercedes-Benz EQS, all representation saloons (segment F) with electric motors.
A total of 250 employees are working on the “Landjet” project, which will launch a new software platform, among other things. The vehicle’s development will cost the Volkswagen Group several billion euros; However, the company does not expect the model to incur losses, as its objective is to achieve annual sales of between 15,000 and 20,000 units worldwide. Also, the Handelsblatt claims that both Porsche and Bentley will have their own versions of the Audi ‘Landjet,’ supporting rumors that the next Panamera and Mulsanne will be 100% electric.