Stellantis has announced plans for a new Level 2++ autonomous driving system. It uses the Wayve AI Driver to deliver door-to-door hands-free driving. The system is set to arrive in 2028 and operate on highways and in cities. Last summer, rumors started swirling that Stellantis had decided to shelve their Level 3 STLA AutoDrive system. The move was blamed on “high costs, technological challenges, and concerns about consumer appetite.” Fast forward to today, and it appears the company is doing a soft reboot with so-called “Level 2++” technology. This promises to deliver “hands-free door-to-door supervised automated driving across highway and urban environments.” In effect, it sounds like a more advanced version of Hands-Free Active Driving Assist that can operate on city streets. More: Dodge, Jeep, Alfa Could Get Level 3 Autonomy Before Tesla With New STLA AutoDrive The new Level 2++ system will utilize the Wayve AI Driver to “deliver intuitive, safe, and very natural advanced driver assistance systems to customers, while building a flexible foundation that can evolve toward more advanced levels of automation over time.” The technology is expected to be integrated into an unnamed North American model in 2028. That’s a ways off, but Stellantis Chief Engineering and Technology Officer Ned Curic said that “Combining our STLA AutoDrive platform with Wayve’s groundbreaking AI-first approach creates a genuinely intuitive and enjoyable hands-free driving experience. This collaboration is a testament to how the right partnerships allow us to scale advanced technology globally while anchoring customer safety and experience at the center.” Those sentiments were echoed by Wayve CEO Alex Kendall, who revealed a Stellantis prototype was created in less than two months. It’s based on the Jeep Grand Cherokee and looks surprisingly normal. However, the prototype appears to have new cameras mounted in the side mirrors as well as a new sensor at the top of the windshield. Stellantis also talked about a less advanced system that relies on Qualcomm. Thanks to an expanded partnership, the automaker will embrace the Snapdragon Ride Pilot advanced driver assistance system, which allows for everything from basic safety and regulatory features to Level 2+ hands-free driving. This system will apparently arrive in 2027 and be offered on a wide range of vehicles. That’s good news as Hands-Free Active Driving Assist has been relegated to a handful of models.
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