Held below the banner “Attempt for readability,” the occasion in Milan additionally marks the following chapter within the firm’s transformation. With a design that focuses on readability, Audi is taking a daring step in the direction of a lowered and timeless aesthetic that may proceed to distinguish the corporate in instances of elevated competitors. It’s no coincidence that this new starting is going down in a metropolis that has stood for design, know-how, and memorable personalities for hundreds of years. At present, few concepts proceed to encourage as a lot as these of the Renaissance. “Visionary considering and a drive to transcend the acquainted are exemplary to Audi,” says Audi CEO Gernot Döllner. That’s the reason Italy’s design capital is the proper place to start a brand new period. Right here, the perfect that Audi pursues turns into tangible.
A brand new design philosophy centered on readability
The brand new strategy is made obvious by a design language, which unmistakably embodies the model’s id.Audi stands for distinctive design, uncompromising high quality, and class.
“Radical simplicity is on the coronary heart of our strategy. We obtain readability by lowering all the things to the important,” says Chief Artistic Officer Massimo Frascella. This not solely applies to the autos’ exteriors, but in addition to their interiors. The newest technological improvements and supplies are used exactly wherever they permit new prospects for purchasers – and minimal measures have maximal impression.
For Frascella, this strategy is about what makes a automobile fascinating past rational expertise. Feelings thus play an necessary half within the design philosophy. “We need to form a model able to inspiring want and creating cultural impression.”
Audi Idea C previews the design of future fashions
The Audi Idea C, which shall be on present at IAA in Munich, is the primary manifestation of this new design philosophy. The idea automobile previews the design of future merchandise and a brand new inside expertise, embodying common design rules: a discount to the important – with out superfluous strains or parts – and a dedication to geometric readability. It’s outlined by the vertical body impressed by the long-lasting Auto Union Sort C racing automobile. The automobile design’s vertical orientation focuses the gaze. Discount to the important can also be mirrored within the inside, which frees customers from distractions and offers the proper info on the proper time by means of clever know-how.
“Our historical past is marked by daring leaps in innovation and state-of-the-art know-how mixed with an uncompromising deal with readability in design,” emphasizes Audi CEO Gernot Döllner. “Our most legendary fashions completely embody this mix.” Audi’s quattro all-wheel drive system revolutionized the automotive world. In motorsport, the model triumphed due to highly effective engines, modern supplies, and aerodynamic design – a recipe for fulfillment that has influenced automobile growth far past the racetrack.
Design philosophy touches each side of the corporate
A return to what exemplifies Audi and a discount to the important play a central position not solely in design: “The way in which we design our autos is the way in which we are going to form our firm,” says Gernot Döllner. The brand new design philosophy is subsequently a company precept for Audi that shall be mirrored within the design of the mannequin portfolio and the product vary in addition to within the organizational construction of the corporate. Döllner: “Readability is an ethos and the compass that may information Audi by means of the instances forward.”
The presentation of the brand new design philosophy in Milan represents a brand new starting. “The part of taking inventory is over. Now’s the time to look to the longer term and choose up pace. We’re specializing in what actually issues to set requirements in design and high quality,” says the Audi CEO.
“The inspiration for realigning the corporate has been laid“
The corporate has been pushing for profound adjustments since 2023 with its Audi Agenda. Within the first half of 2025, Audi continued to press forward with their implementation in an effort to strengthen its modern capabilities and future-proof its enterprise mannequin.
“We at the moment are seeing preliminary successes,” mentioned Döllner. “For instance, with our mannequin initiative and with our centered portfolio, which allows us to put money into high quality and innovation. Or in our enterprise mannequin for China, the place we’ve as soon as once more demonstrated pioneering spirit with our new sister model AUDI.” The settlement for the longer term reached by the Board of Administration and the Works Council in March additionally strengthens the corporate’s future-proofing and competitiveness. Moreover, Audi is investing round eight billion euros in its German websites by 2029.
Audi mannequin initiative to proceed
By the top of this 12 months, Audi may have launched greater than 20 new fashions inside 24 months making its portfolio the youngest within the premium section. Following the substitute of core fashions such because the Audi A6 in spring and the Audi Q3 in summer time, the 4 rings will showcase the Q3 Sportback e-hybrid1 on the IAA.
Audi is about to proceed its mannequin initiative subsequent 12 months. Additional additions will embody a completely electrical entry-level mannequin, which shall be produced in Ingolstadt from 2026, and efficiency fashions from Audi Sport. The mix of all-electric fashions, plug-in hybrids, and a brand new era of combustion-engine autos will safe a sturdy and versatile place within the core markets of Europe, China and North America because the transition to electrical mobility progresses.
On the identical time, Audi is already engaged on the following innovation cycle. Strategic partnerships reminiscent of that between Volkswagen Group and Rivian allow improvements to be developed extra shortly and cost-efficiently – particularly these concerning software program. In 2026, Audi may even be getting into Components 1: a possibility to check new applied sciences, supplies, and processes on this planet’s hardest know-how laboratory. Gernot Döllner: “Preparations for our begin in Components 1 are transferring at full pace.” And only a few weeks after the revealing of the brand new design philosophy in Milan, one other thrilling second for the 4 rings is already on the horizon: “We sit up for giving all followers a concrete preview of what to anticipate from us in Components 1 beginning subsequent 12 months.”
