Sweden’s Autoliv and US autonomous-vehicle firm Tensor say they have co-developed the world’s first foldable steering wheel designed for a production vehicle, a move that underlines how cabin design is starting to shift as automation levels rise.
The component is being developed for the Tensor Robocar, which the companies expect to be ready for volume production in the second half of 2026.
Tensor plans to offer the Robocar in the United States, Europe and the Middle East.
The idea is straightforward: keep a conventional steering wheel when a human wants to drive, then retract it when the vehicle is operating autonomously.
Autoliv and Tensor said the dual-mode layout is meant to free up space in the driver’s area, turning what is normally a fixed control surface into something that can disappear when it is not needed.
In Level 4 mode, the steering wheel retracts as the Robocar’s autonomous driving system takes over within defined operating conditions, meaning the vehicle can handle all driving tasks without human intervention in those scenarios.
The companies argued this cleared the front cabin visually and physically, improving comfort and making the interior more flexible for occupants.
Safety, they added, changes with the driving mode as well.
When the steering wheel is folded away for autonomous running, a passenger airbag integrated into the instrument panel is enabled.
When the vehicle is being driven manually, the airbag housed in the steering wheel is used instead. Autoliv says both configurations are designed to deliver the same level of protection.
“Automotive safety can no longer follow a one-size-fits-all philosophy,” said Autoliv executive vice president and chief technology officer Fabien Dumont, who described the project as a way to make safety more adaptive to how the vehicle is being used.
Tensor chief executive Jay Xiao said the company expects demand for both autonomous operation and manual driving, depending on the situation, and positioned the foldable wheel as a practical bridge between the two.
He added that foldable steering wheels have largely been confined to concept vehicles, with Tensor aiming to bring the feature to series production.
The partnership reflected a broader push by suppliers and AV developers to treat safety as both a crash-protection problem and a packaging challenge as automated mobility moves closer to mass-market reality.
