U.S. ride-hailing giant Uber announced a partnership with Chinese company Pony.ai to deploy 2,000 self-driving taxis across Europe, with expansion also planned for the Middle East. The two companies launched a commercial robotaxi service in Zagreb, Croatia in late March, which they claim is the first in Europe, and plan to expand to four more European cities without naming them or providing a timeline. This alliance is part of Uber’s strategy to become the world’s leading commercialization platform for autonomous vehicles. The U.S. competitor Waymo, backed by Alphabet, remains the global leader with a fleet of around 5,000 vehicles, while Chinese rivals Baidu Apollo Go and WeRide are also ramping up their projects in Europe.
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