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The Famed Lada, Redesigned and Geared Toward Autonomous Mobility for 2050

Concepts are a wonderful thing. Why? Because they serve a number of purposes. One of which is to predict or possibly bring forth the future. But sometimes, that future is so far ahead we may never make it there, not in the same way at least.
Lada 2050 11 photos
Photo: Andrey Kirichenko
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This might be the said about this Lada design for the year 2050 by Andrey Kirichenko, a designer out of Munchen, Germany. But because the designer can trace his roots to Russia, it’s only fitting that once you’ve become a successful exterior designer, that you do a work that pays homage to your roots. That’s what this looks like. But then again, this is unlike any Lada we’ve ever seen.

From the start, we don’t seem to have any sort of off-roading capabilities, as the design is similar to other autonomous vehicles we’ve brought to your attention, and none of those, except the 2030 Chevy Colorado, do any sort of off-roading. And if it does, then it better hover over terrain as the body shows absolutely no sort of suspension.

Rather than resembling any off-road vehicles, this autonomously driven car is more meant for a future where streets are as flat as possible, and everything is just clean. Noone gets dirty in the future? HA! I doubt it. Humans seen to like their mud the way elephants do on a hot summer day.

Lada 2050
Photo: Andrey Kirichenko
Aside from just looking like a space vehicle that’s meant to zip around space stations, we know nothing about the design. But we can still take a gander like a kid in a candy shop. As other autonomously driven vehicles, the wheels seem to be enclosed in those fins that support the main cabin. If it is anything like those other EVs, then those massive openings in front of the tires could be meant to take in air and cool down those systems.

We do know that the vehicle runs on something called Thorium fuel cells. Honestly, I thought Thorium is some made up idea, but it turns out it’s not. It’s an alternative method of fueling nuclear power plants and seems to be a whole lot safer and more abundant than Uranium... Russians.

As for the actual autonomous functions, data is captured through several sensors, of which the designer tells us nothing, but most likely Lidar, radar, and other motion sensing tech. This data is then relayed to the on-board AI that will take that data and direct the vehicle accordingly.

Lada 2050
Photo: Andrey Kirichenko
Inside the Lada, however, only mystery remains. We’re shown nothing of the interior, thus left wondering. The only thing we can deduce is that the entire overhead section is to be made of glass to offer something to look at while out for a ride.

So, what we’re being told is that you’ll basically be driven around by an AI, all the while sitting on a nuclear reactor. Sounds legit if you ask me. Just kidding. Before anything like this happens, it’s really going to be a long time, as I don’t know how soon we’re going to have nuclear energy powering our cars. That’s not to say somebody out there hasn’t already done this or isn’t planning on it.
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About the author: Cristian Curmei
Cristian Curmei profile photo

A bit of a nomad at heart (being born in Europe and raised in several places in the USA), Cristian is enamored with travel trailers, campers and bikes. He also tests and writes about urban means of transportation like scooters, mopeds and e-bikes (when he's not busy hosting our video stories and guides).
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