Uber expands global reach with 2,000 Pony.ai robo-taxis in Europe
American ride-hailing company Uber is increasing its global presence in the robotaxi sector through a new partnership with Pony.ai, a Chinese autonomous vehicle operator.
The two companies plan to install 2,000 Pony.ai autonomous vehicles in several regions of Europe, in addition to expanding robotaxi collaboration to countries in the Middle East.
In a pioneering move in Europe, a commercial robotaxi service was opened by Uber and Pony.ai at the end of March in the city of Zagreb, capital of Croatia.
More on this story: MIT Unveils Innovative Lidar Chip That Enhances Autonomous Vehicle Vision and Mapping
This recent agreement foresees that robo-taxis will reach four more European locations. However, the companies have not yet announced which cities will be included nor the precise schedule for this expansion.
The formation of a fleet of autonomous vehicles of significant size is a crucial pillar for its commercial viability. A greater number of cars not only enables the collection of more robust data, essential for proving safety to regulatory bodies, but also boosts operational efficiency and, consequently, encourages greater user adoption of the service.
Learn more: Waymo has almost a thousand robotaxis parked in Arizona waiting for authorization to circulate
Waymo, a robotaxi operator supported by the European Union, positions itself as a world leader with a fleet of approximately 5,000 vehicles, mainly concentrated in the United States. The company runs trials in London and reportedly founded new entities in four major EU economies in June. Waymo is also developing projects in Tokyo and is holding talks with global authorities to prepare for future international operations, as stated in a statement.
At the same time, Chinese companies such as Baidu Apollo Go and WeRide are accelerating their projects and tests to launch autonomous travel services on the European continent.
See Also
Former boxing promise Prichard Colón loses his life at age 33 due to trauma in the ring
Apple trains its own AI model for the China market in partnership with Alibaba
Google launches Gemini 3.7 Flash with coding improvements and promotional price for developers
Uber has a stake in most of these ventures.
On the same topic: Amazon has Zoox autonomous taxis approved for commercial use in the United States
In June, WeRide and Uber revealed their intention to start the pioneering robot taxi pilot project in Spain, in the city of Madrid, scheduled for this year. Both companies already operate as partners in Abu Dhabi and Dubai.
Recently, Uber announced that its unit in Japan has reached an agreement with a local taxi company. The objective is to manage the daily operations of a fleet of autonomous vehicles, as part of a pilot project that will be launched in Tokyo in 2024.
CEO Dara Khosrowshahi said Uber’s goal is “to become the world’s leading autonomous vehicle commercialization platform,” according to FactSet’s earnings call transcript.
The executive explained that part of this strategy involves compiling a “superset of data”, intended to be shared with partners to accelerate progress in the development of autonomous cars.
Pony.ai is expected to release its quarterly results.
