Volkswagen-Audi sells Italdesign to UST: "The soap opera is over!

For months, the future ofItaldesign has been hanging by a thread, between embarrassed silences, social concerns and an improbable industrial battle. This time, it's official: Volkswagen-Audi has chosen its new owner. The historic studio founded by Giorgetto Giugiaro is to come under the majority control of UST, an American technology company based in California... that few knew about until now. The expression used by Fiom, "the soap opera is over", perfectly sums up the atmosphere in Moncalieri: a mixture of relief and apprehension.

Shock becomes reality

Just yesterday, the news of a possible sale was enough to send shockwaves all the way to Piedmont. At Italdesign headquarters, where a DeLorean DMC-12 stands as a reminder of the company's worldwide heritage, employees lived in total uncertainty. Volkswagen, despite Italdesign's solid figures of 330 million euros in sales and 30 million euros in net profit, wanted to offload this "peripheral" subsidiary. This choice was dictated by the Group's restructuring, financial pressure and the desire to concentrate investments on electric cars and other strategic technologies.

For employees, this was a difficult pill to swallow. Many saw themselves as a natural extension of Audi and Volkswagen. When the name UST first circulated, concern turned to unease: a company specializing in digital, AI and technology services, with no obvious automotive DNA. The idea of a radical repositioning or partial dismantling suddenly seemed plausible. The recent departures of some sixty engineers spoke volumes about the internal climate.

UST takes over, Lamborghini stays, so does Audi

The agreement now signed reveals a more nuanced situation than employees had feared. UST buys back the majority of Italdesign, but Lamborghini retains a significant share, as does Audi, which remains a long-term strategic customer. In other words, projects with the German group are not disappearing, an essential element in stabilizing the teams and the business.

On the Californian side, the operation is presented as an alliance of the "best of both worlds": on the one hand, Italdesign's experience in design, engineering, prototyping and small series production; on the other, UST's skills in digital systems, software-defined vehicles, connectivity and artificial intelligence. It may sound like a lot of technological jargon, but the objective is clear: to become a hybrid giant, capable of accompanying a manufacturer from the blank page to the final vehicle, both physical and digital.

In Audi's corridors, there's talk of continuity. Geoffrey Bouquot, Head of Technical Development, hails Italdesign as a "valuable partner" and assures us that the collaboration will continue. UST's CEO, Krishna Sudheendra, is equally enthusiastic, seeing Italdesign as a strategic gas pedal that will enable him to gain a deeper foothold in the global automotive industry.

Reactions in Italy: relief... and lingering concerns

In Turin, the announcement had the effect of a liberation. Marco Gay, president of the Unione Industriali, sees this as recognition of local know-how and opportunities for growth, thanks in particular to the continued participation of Lamborghini and Audi in the capital and orders.

The unions, for their part, adopt a more measured tone. Gianni Mannori, from the Fiom, welcomes the end of the "soap opera", but does not hide his skepticism: while UST guarantees that no site closures are planned and that jobs will be protected for four years, the real industrial prospects remain unclear. What is most worrying is the preservation of the skills and identity of a company that has shaped part of the world's automotive history.

The other sensitive point concerns Italy's institutions. Mannori makes no secret of the fact: for him, their absence during these months of negotiation is "embarrassing". This is all the more bitter given that several Italian industrial and financial players, including former Ferrari and Fiat executives, had attempted a patriotic counter-offer. In the end, their initiative came too late to make any impact in the face of Volkswagen's rapid response. For the time being, the main thing is settled: Volkswagen-Audi has turned the page, UST is entering the scene, and the soap opera... is over. UST and the Audi Group have not disclosed the amount of the investment or other details of the contract. All that remains is to write the next season.