Comparing customer perceptions of potential autonomous vehicle manufacturers: an analysis of the relationship between corporate reputation and intention to use

The introduction of autonomous vehicles has the potential to change the world of mobility. As they can be understood as 'really new products', customers cannot evaluate their technical characteristics yet. Instead, customers' perceptions of competing companies might be an important determinant of acceptance. Hence, in this study, we examine the role of corporate reputation, precisely character and capability reputation, as well as adverse events to understand what drives customers' intention to use autonomous vehicles beyond traditional technology acceptance factors. We highlight differences between three groups of potential manufacturers. Our results indicate that corporate reputation is an important prerequisite for customers' acceptance. Furthermore, adverse events negatively affect reputation. Regarding the different groups, we find that mobility start-ups benefit from an overall positive evaluation, whereas consumers are less confident towards traditional automotive manufacturers. The study enhances the understanding of customer intentions in automotive management research and expands the literature on corporate reputation.