Audi Group partners with UST as Italdesign changes ownership

Audi Group confirms a strategic partnership with UST, which acquires a majority stake in Italdesign, reshaping the company’s future in design and engineering.

Audi Group has announced a strategic partnership with global technology company UST, under which UST will acquire a majority stake in Italdesign Giugiaro S.p.A. Automobili Lamborghini S.p.A., part of the Audi Group, will retain a significant shareholding, while Audi remains a long-term strategic partner and an important client of Italdesign.

The transaction brings together two distinct yet complementary areas of expertise. UST contributes capabilities in artificial intelligence, digital transformation, software-defined vehicle development, and digital ecosystem design. Italdesign, founded in 1968 and part of the Volkswagen Group since 2010, continues to build on its strengths in vehicle and product design, engineering, prototyping, small-series production, and automotive electronics.

Following completion, UST will assume operational responsibility for Italdesign, while emphasizing its intention to preserve the company’s Italian heritage, design culture, and workforce. Lamborghini’s continued involvement as a shareholder ensures continuity in Italdesign’s long-standing relationship with the Audi Group, which spans more than five decades.

Audi executives describe the partnership as a reflection of broader structural changes in the automotive industry. As software and digital functions increasingly define modern vehicles, the ability to integrate hardware and software development has become strategically critical. In this context, the combination of UST’s digital and AI expertise with Italdesign’s engineering and design capabilities is positioned as a foundation for end-to-end solutions, from early concepts to industrial implementation.

For Italdesign, the new ownership structure is seen as an opportunity to accelerate the expansion of its service portfolio and strengthen its international footprint. The company has stated its ambition to become a global hardware and software integrator, not only in the automotive sector but also across other high-technology industries.

The financial terms of the transaction have not been disclosed. Completion of the deal remains subject to regulatory approvals.