Some of the UK’s most innovative transport companies will showcase their technologies to high-profile investors and business leaders at this month’s Global Investment Summit in London.
Arrival, Aurrigo-RDM Group, Wrightbus and Vertical Aerospace are among 12 companies hand-picked by the UK government to demonstrate their solutions as part of a ‘green dozen’ showcase at the event, which takes place on 19 October.
Hosted by UK prime minister Boris Johnson and supported by members of the Royal Family, the summit aims to demonstrate Britain’s commitment to green industrial technology in the UK and abroad ahead of COP26, and promote the UK as a top destination for foreign investment.
Around 200 investors – comprising some of the world’s most prominent decision-makers, investors, C-suite executives, and heads of major political institutions – attending the summit will see the latest innovations helping to deliver key areas of Johnson’s ’10-Point Plan’ to use green technology to reduce emissions and limit the rise in global temperatures.
At the showcase, which intends to demonstrate major leaps forward in sustainable technologies, guests will be able to use their smartphones to view a virtual Arrival electric van on their screens and drop it into the venue space.
Arrival is developing commercial EV designed to be price-competitive with fossil fuel vehicles. Its product portfolio consists of the Van (10,000 ordered by UPS), Bus (trials start with First Bus in Q1 2022 in the UK), and Car (for ride-hailing, being designed in collaboration with Uber).
Coventry-based Aurrigo, which has designed, developed and built a number of driverless vehicles currently being tested in ‘live’ traffic, will exhibit its four-seater Auto-Pod ‘first- and last-mile’ transport solution for city centres, and its Auto-Dolly autonomous luggage and cargo system for airports.
Through an augmented reality display, Northern Ireland-based bus manufacturer Wrightbus will show the inner workings of the world’s first hydrogen double-decker as well as a monitor displaying where Wrightbus Hydroliners are running and the journey carbon savings – versus a diesel bus of the same model.
Vertical Aerospace, which designs and builds electrically powered vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft, will showcase a 3m x 3m scale model of its zero-emission eVTOL aircraft, the VA-X4.
UK investment minister Gerry Grimstone said: “Our Global Investment Summit will put UK innovation on the map, and demonstrate how we can use investment to nurture technological developments and propel our economy towards a more prosperous, exciting future.”
