BENTELER Group, a global technology and mobility provider, announced the acquisition of ioki GmbH, a leading European developer of software-based mobility solutions, from Deutsche Bahn AG. The agreement has been signed, with transaction details remaining confidential, and closing is expected shortly.
With this acquisition, HOLON, ioki, and Benteler Mobility together form Europe’s first full-service provider for autonomous mobility. HOLON produces the autonomous HOLON urban shuttle, ioki provides platform and routing technology for on-demand and public-transport integration, and Benteler Mobility delivers operational services and fleet financing. The integrated offering gives cities, transit agencies, and mobility providers access to vehicles, software, and operations from a single source. ioki’s data-driven analyses and simulations identify areas where autonomous vehicles can complement public transport, enabling scalable, cost-efficient deployment of autonomous services.
“The acquisition brings together HOLON’s manufacturing expertise and Benteler Mobility’s operational capabilities with the digital platform solutions by ioki – hardware, services, and software all in one place,” said Ralf Göttel, CEO of the BENTELER Group. “This integrated approach is unique in our industry. It radically simplifies the deployment and operation of autonomous vehicles for customers. Alongside our core business in metal processing, BENTELER is thus strategically evolving into a leading provider in the autonomous mobility sector.”
Founded in 2018, ioki employs more than 100 people, and its on-demand software has served over 200 transport services and nearly 10 million passengers. ioki has been a pioneer in data-driven transport planning and autonomous vehicle integration within public transport. Joining BENTELER unlocks international expansion and strengthens its driver-based ridepooling solutions while remaining vehicle- and system-agnostic, allowing customers to integrate HOLON vehicles or other autonomous technology.
“As part of the BENTELER Group, we can further strengthen and scale the market leadership of our successfully established software and analytics products on an international level. Our mission is to connect people intelligently. Our data-driven mobility expertise, combined with deep public-transport know-how and global reach, enables sustainable, connected mobility. European technology for the world. Together with HOLON and Benteler Mobility, we have strong partners at our side who will support our further development in the long term," said Michael Barillère-Scholz, co-founder and CEO of ioki.
HOLON, ioki, and Benteler Mobility have begun joint projects serving as a blueprint for the integrated solution. “HOLON, ioki, and Benteler Mobility share the same vision: to make sustainable mobility accessible to everyone – simple, safe, and reliable. Mobility is evolving, and together we are now the leading partner for this transformation. We support cities and operators in integrating autonomous mobility into their transport systems in a lasting and economically viable way,” said Sven Herzig, Chief Sales Officer of HOLON, and Tobias Liebelt, CEO of Benteler Mobility.