Volkswagen Group of America and four large automotive suppliers have formed a working group to develop technical standards to improve the way vehicles transmit data, which will help enable fully autonomous vehicles, the company has announced.

Volkswagen has formed the Network for Autonomous Vehicles Alliance with Aquantia Corp., Robert Bosch GmbH, Continental AG, and Nvidia. The group will focus on "the next generation of Multi-Gig Ethernet networking" in vehicles.

The group will develop procedures and testing requirements for interoperability, security, and reliability; promote products that adhere to the new specifications; promote vehicle network standardization; and educate the market place about the requirements for autonomous vehicle networks.

The group's work could bear some similarity to the efforts of Auto-ISAC, a working group of automakers, suppliers, and regulators that meet to discuss cybersecurity of vehicles. That organization was established in August of 2015 and will host its second annual summit in September. Jeff Massimilla, vice president of global cybersecurity for General Motors, is the chairman of the group.

Related: NAFA Partners with Auto-ISAC for Vehicle Security Advocacy