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CORRECTING and REPLACING Volkswagen Group and Stanford University Host German Chancellor Angela Merkel

An accompanying video asset has also been added to the release.

The corrected release reads:

VOLKSWAGEN GROUP AND STANFORD UNIVERSITY HOST GERMAN CHANCELLOR ANGELA MERKEL

Chancellor Celebrates the Unveiling of the Volkswagen Automotive Innovation Laboratory (VAIL); Honors Stanford Students and Automotive Innovation with Ribbon Cutting and Facility Tour

Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (VWGoA) and Stanford University's School of Engineering welcomed German Chancellor Angela Merkel yesterday for the formal dedication and opening of the Volkswagen Automotive Innovation Laboratory (VAIL) on the Stanford campus.

Chancellor Merkel presided over the ceremonial ribbon cutting and the first official tour of VAIL, a $5.75 million commitment from the Volkswagen Group to research at the Stanford School of Engineering.

"Vibrant public-private partnerships such as the successful collaboration between the Volkswagen Group and Stanford are critical to a sustainable future. Thanks to the vision and leadership of Chancellor Merkel, government is supporting the transition to a cleaner energy supply through a long-term and comprehensive policy framework," said Dr. Karl-Thomas Neumann, Volkswagen Group's Chief Officer for Electric Traction.

At the event, Chancellor Merkel discussed automobile innovation and praised the work of Stanford and Volkswagen Group of America. She toured the facility and reviewed the VAIL research projects. She spoke with students and Volkswagen engineers regarding the innovative automobiles and concluded her visit by starting an autonomous car using an iPhone application.

Today's celebration was attended by around 200 people, including Volkswagen Group executives, members of the German delegation, university officials and Stanford engineering students. Automobiles presented to the Chancellor included:

• Pikes Peak TTS is designed specifically by Stanford University and the Volkswagen Group of America ERL to take on the Pikes Peak hill-climbing race course in the Rocky Mountains. It utilizes a special driving technique called "drifting" - essentially a controlled slide - to complete the course. This autonomous vehicle navigates using GPS. It is a white Audi TTS. The advanced control research could ultimately improve driver safety.
• Junior 2 is the most current iteration of the same autonomous vehicle used in the DARPA Urban Challenge competition (the first "Junior" came in second in that competition). It can detect pedestrians, bicyclists and traffic signals, all while obeying traffic rules and driving itself around an urban environment. It is a blue Passat Wagon.
• Junior 3 runs the prototype Autonomous Valet Parking system. Using only near-stock sensors, Junior 3 navigates a parking garage and parks itself. The driver can recall the vehicle to the garage exit via smartphone.
• Clean Air A8 (Audi) is part of the Audi Clean Air Viable Planet research initiative. In order to accelerate the development of fuel-efficient vehicle concepts with lower emissions, this initiative supports research programs at Stanford, UC Berkeley, and UC Riverside. The vision of this initiative is to create connected, intelligent vehicles that are capable of collaborating with their users and with each other to preserve the environment.
• Solar Car is a custom vehicle built from the ground up by the Stanford Solar Car Project, an undergraduate-run organization. The vehicle is scheduled to run 3000 km across Australia exclusively on solar power in the 2011 World Solar Challenge.
• X1 is a modular x-by-wire research vehicle developed by Stanford University in collaboration with TU Braunschweig among others to test new and innovative control strategies.

"It was with great honor that Chancellor Merkel was with us today in celebrating Volkswagen Group and Stanford's investment in the future of automobiles and clean air technology," said Dr. Burkhard Huhnke, executive director, Electronics Research Laboratory, Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. "Our Bay Area locations are at the center of innovation, research, development and education. We have some of the brightest minds working to change the way we think of mobility. We aim to give drivers a safer, eco-friendly and more enjoyable driving experience. It was a pleasure to highlight our facilities and work and receive the Chancellor's ongoing support."

The Volkswagen Group's $5.75 million commitment includes $2 million for building construction and another $750,000 a year for five years to fund research and teaching activities.

The automaker's innovations have already led to numerous driver assisted technologies and communication tools that help drivers stay safer behind the wheel, such as Apple iPhone integration, 3D graphics, speech recognition and LED headlights.

Operations throughout California have created 250 direct jobs and helped create 4,504 jobs for dealer employees. Furthermore, Volkswagen Group's Electronics Research Laboratory (ERL), has the largest research presence of any automaker in the San Francisco Bay Area.

About Volkswagen Group of America Inc.

Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. is a wholly owned subsidiary of Volkswagen AG, the world's third-largest automaker and the largest carmaker in Europe. It houses the U.S. operations of a worldwide family of distinguished and exciting brands including Audi, Bentley, Bugatti, Lamborghini and Volkswagen, as well as VW Credit, Inc. Founded in 1955, the company's headquarters are in Herndon, Va.

Volkswagen Group of America brings to the U.S. vehicles that marry the science of engineering and the art of styling, with the goal of offering attractive, safe, and environmentally sound automobiles that are competitive and set world standards in their respective classes.

The company has approximately 2,500 employees in the United States and sells its vehicles through an 800-strong dealer network. With increasing popularity for its brands in the U.S., the company has set the goal of reaching one million car sales in the country by 2018.

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Volkswagen Group of America
Jill Bratina, 202-957-0715
jill.bratina@vw.com
or
MWW Group
Meghan Fintland, 415-202-4339
mfintland@mww.com