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By Bolaji Ojo
What’s at stake: Stefan Poledna, CEO and CTO of TTTech Auto, reveals how the Autonomous event is evolving from a focus on self-driving cars to advancing safe, collaborative autonomy across global industries.
The future of autonomous driving and robotics is at a critical turning point, marked by soaring expectations, regulatory scrutiny, and a transformation of the traditional boundaries between automotive technology and other economic sectors.
The Autonomous Main Event 2025, set for Vienna, Austria, is more than a showcase. It reflects the technology industry’s shifting ambitions and its most pressing questions: Are these intelligent systems truly ready for deployment on a global scale and can safety and trust match innovation?
In the words of Stefan Poledna, CEO and CTO of TTTech Auto: “Autonomous mobility is one of mankind’s biggest technological challenges. It’s about making systems safe.”
Autonomous technology’s growth trajectory is breathtaking. By 2025, the global autonomous vehicles market is projected to reach $428.3 billion, up from $282.2 billion in 2024, and is expected to hit $2 trillion by 2030. This includes both semi-autonomous and fully autonomous segments, with the former contributing $236.85 billion, and the latter $191.45 billion in revenue for 2025.
Yet, asTechSplicit editors observed in our interview with Poledna, “The real impact of autonomy isn’t just on our roads but across every sphere touched by automation — from manufacturing floors to hospital operating theaters.”
Varied applications
No longer confined to automotive applications, autonomous systems are revolutionizing manufacturing, logistics, healthcare, and agriculture. In manufacturing, robotic assembly lines now streamline production, reducing human error, and boosting output.
Predictive maintenance systems use AI to anticipate equipment failures, representing a leap from reactive to proactive operations. Leading carmakers like BMW and Ford deploy autonomous guided vehicles and robotic arms for welding, painting, and transporting parts, dramatically improving precision and reliability.
Healthcare is similarly getting transformed. Robotic surgical systems such as the da Vinci Surgical System enable minimally invasive procedures with enhanced precision. Autonomous robots like TUG deliver medications and supplies within hospitals, improving safety and efficiency while reducing costs. In logistics, companies like Amazon harness warehouse robots to optimize inventory management and distribution, offering a glimpse into a future where speed and accuracy are the norm.
Autonomous conference’s evolution
This broadening of scope is evident in the Autonomous Main Event’s programming for 2025. Where previous iterations focused solely on automated driving, the event now embraces robotics and autonomous equipment across industries.
“The boundaries are blurring,” Poledna explained. “You have autonomous vehicles in logistics, rescue, construction, shop floors. The market dynamics demanded it. We are moving beyond automotive, and the event reflects that transformation.”
Panels at the event address end-to-end architecture, the evolution from software-defined to AI-defined autonomy, regulatory roadmaps, and the pivotal role of robotics. Workshops go deep into technical challenges, while keynotes bring out economic, ethical, and societal implications. International speakers, including from China, a rapidly advancing hub, highlight the emergence of robotics as a global force and the necessity of cross-sector learning.
The boundaries are blurring. You have autonomous vehicles in logistics, rescue, construction, shop floors. The market dynamics demanded it. We are moving beyond automotive, and the [Autonomous] event reflects that transformation.”
As the market surges and applications diversify, the industry’s perennial challenge remains safety. “We want systems provably safer than human drivers,” Poledna said. Level three and four automated driving systems must be fail-operational, maintaining safe operation without human intervention even through system failures. This is a feat that requires redundancy in power supply, communications, sensors, steering, and computing.
The shift from AI in image recognition to “end-to-end AI”— systems making decisions from sensor input all the way to vehicle actuation — raises tough questions about validation and trust. “How do you safeguard your AI system,”? said Poledna. “You can’t just rely on testing alone.” Simulation of billions of test miles is costly and time consuming, and statistical validation must convince not just engineers, but regulators and the public.
TechSplicit editors weighed in with an outsider’s skepticism, noting: “There’s a sense that industry is taking the whole issue of autonomous driving very seriously. But at the other end there are doubts whether we’re truly ready or ever will be. The target seems elusive, and there’s a constant debate about the real-world performance of current products.”
Legal risks and regulatory reality: The Tesla case
Recent legal challenges serve as a cautionary tale. In August 2025, a U.S. federal judge certified a class action lawsuit against Tesla, alleging that Elon Musk and Tesla misrepresented the capabilities of their ‘Full Self-Driving’ system for eight years. The suits center on claims that Tesla vehicles lacked the necessary sensors and software to enable true autonomy, while consumers purchased pricey upgrades expecting full self-driving capability.
Media commentary points out that, despite bold marketing statements and optimistic timelines, Tesla has yet to deliver on the promise of cross-country, hands-free driving. A Miami jury recently awarded substantial damages against Tesla for a crash involving its Autopilot system, finding the company partially liable for misrepresenting the technology’s limits.
Regulators are watching closely. Chinese authorities recently instituted restrictions on autonomous driving system claims, reflecting the need for clearer standards and transparency. As Poledna remarked, “It’s not just technology under scrutiny. It’s a societal discussion. What is the level of acceptance? How do we approve these systems? Both sides matter: technological readiness and regulatory approval.”
TTTech Auto’s approach, now under the expanded umbrella of NXP Semiconductors since June, stresses collaboration over competition. According to Poledna, “We don’t want this (Autonomous Conference) to be a TTTech Auto marketing show. Our sincere interest is to move industry forward. Collaboration benefits everyone, OEMs, Tier 1s, chip makers, sensor companies. We remain neutral, open, and committed to our mission, even under NXP’s ownership.”
Innovation streams, TTTech Auto’s year-round working groups, ensure that safety, architecture, regulatory compliance, and AI validation receive continuing attention, culminating in independently published reports widely cited across the industry. “After the event is before the event,” said Poledna, referencing the non-stop cycle of development and discussion that keeps the sector moving.
The road ahead
Industry analysts forecast heady growth, but are careful to distinguish between technological optimism and practical hurdles. According to Goldman Sachs, ridesharing markets for robotaxis could see a compound annual growth rate near 90 percent, from 2025 to 2030. Statista and Precedence Research echo predictions of trillion-dollar market valuations, driven by advances in AI, sensors, and mass deployment of autonomous fleets.
TechSplicit editors caution, however, that “Despite these huge projections, there are real gaps between technical feasibility and legal, ethical, and societal comfort. The gap between what’s possible and what’s permitted is narrowing, but closing it will demand steady progress, not just in code, but in regulation, accountability, and public trust.”
The applications of autonomous equipment extend far beyond driving. In manufacturing, robotics drive efficiencies and enable predictive maintenance, reducing downtime and improving product quality. Healthcare systems rely on autonomous robots for surgery, cleaning, medication delivery, and patient monitoring. Logistics and warehousing stand transformed, with robots managing inventory and distribution faster and more safely than ever.
Doubts, hurdles, and the big question
For all the promise, uncertainty remains. Bolt-on upgrades, incremental advances, and ‘Level 2 plus’ systems may offer features approaching autonomy but can fall short of the fail-operational architectures needed for true driverless capability. The Tesla lawsuit, and similar scrutiny in other jurisdictions, underscore concerns about transparency on how marketing may outpace reality.
“There are lots of challenges,” notes Poledna. “From distinguishing Level 2 and Level 3 systems, ensuring redundant safety, to constructing persuasive safety cases that prove superiority over human drivers. The solutions are being developed, but the challenge is still strong.”
Analysts at TechSplicit, reflecting wider industry skepticism ask: “Is autonomous driving truly ready for prime time?” They add that “there’s enormous intellectual effort, visionary engineering, and capital at work. But readiness is not just a technical achievement, it’s a social contract. The reckoning will come as these vehicles, robots, and systems face the realities of integration, litigation, and public scrutiny.”
A Convergence in Vienna
The Autonomous 2025 event, holding Sept. 17 and 18 in Vienna, is both a celebration and an interrogation of these trends. TTTech Auto and NXP will convene a cross-section of industry leaders, regulators, researchers, and technologists to dig deeper into the future that is already beginning to reshape economies and societies.
Poledna concluded the interview by assuring that his company intends to maintain the spirit of the Autonomous, notwithstanding the acquisition of TTTech Auto by NXP. “We are still going to evolve in that direction,” he said. “It is something close to my heart — to keep the event’s spirit and develop it for the whole ecosystem.”
Our position at TechSplicit as noted during the discussion is that “The future will be shaped not only by the ingenuity of engineers, but by the integrity and honesty of every stakeholder committed to making autonomy work, for vehicles, robots, and society at large.”
Bottom line: With deep roots in both computer science and industry innovation, Stefan Poledna, CEO and CTO of TTTech Auto, offers a behind-the-scenes look at the challenges, opportunities, and collaborative spirit powering the next wave of robotics and intelligent automation. The yearly Autonomous Conference holding September 17 and 18 in Vienna, Austria, is evolving, as a result, to include everything capable of having autonomous capabilities.
Bolaji Ojo is publisher and Editor-in-chief of TechSplicit. He can be reached at bojo@techsplicit.com.
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