HOLON to test
autonomous shuttle in Paderborn's ‘Zukunftsquartier’

HOLON will use the site of the ‘Zukunftsquartier’ (ENG: Future Quarter) in Paderborn for development and approval testing of its autonomous shuttle – the HOLON urban. This brings parts of the vehicle testing process right to the doorstep of the development department, which is based in Paderborn and Munich. The tests are a key part of the overall development process and provide comprehensive checks of the vehicle’s functionality, safety, and system integration.

Already today, HOLON tests are being conducted at various locations in Europe. By renting the site in Paderborn, it will now be possible to carry out selected test series locally, thus making development cycles significantly more efficient, as Dr. Flavio Friesen, VP Engineering at HOLON, explains: "We are very pleased about the opportunity to carry out development and approval tests locally on site in the future. This allows our developers to work very closely with the product. Coordination is faster and quality is higher, which saves time and significantly advances our development."

With the ‘Zukunftsquartier’, the city of Paderborn is developing an innovative, productive, and diverse district. The approximately 54-hectare site, which is integrated into the city, offers an exceptional opportunity to design a future-oriented and resilient area with model character. The new district will play a key role in strengthening Paderborn's position as an attractive location for people, science, and business in the future.

Accordingly, the city of Paderborn warmly welcomes the testing: HOLON's use of the site underscores the future vision for the area and strengthens the location as a hub for mobility innovation.

At the symbolic handover of the keys, Lars-Christian Lange, Managing Director of Zukunftsquartier Entwicklungsgesellschaft mbH i.G., emphasized: "With HOLON, the Zukunftsquartier is gaining another highly innovative and forward-looking user after the University of Paderborn's Start-up Campus. I am convinced that this cooperation will significantly advance the Zukunftsquartier and strengthen Paderborn as a business location in the long term."

The development of HOLON urban is progressing at full speed. At the beginning of August, technical tests began on public roads in Hamburg as part of the ALIKE project. At the same time, HOLON urban completed its first autonomous drive on public roads in Israel, where the autonomous driving system was implemented by its partner Mobileye. As soon as nationwide approval for autonomous driving – known as Level 4 approval – is also granted in Germany, test operations in autonomous mode will also begin in Hamburg.

Parallel to development, industrial scaling is also in full swing: In Jacksonville, Florida, HOLON is preparing to establish its first production facility in the US. The groundbreaking ceremony is planned for April 2026, with the first vehicles scheduled to roll off the production line in the third quarter of 2027. Jacksonville will thus become the first location in the US where the HOLON urban will be integrated into public transportation.

“We are developing, testing, and scaling simultaneously – demonstrating that the future of urban mobility is not only conceivable, but is becoming a reality,” says Dr. Flavio Friesen. HOLON is proving that the future of urban mobility is not only conceivable – it is already underway.