- A trio of heavyweights is already testing Europe’s first commercial robotaxis.
- Verne, a subsidiary of Rimac Technology, teamed up with Pony.ai and Uber to deploy the first driverless taxis in Croatia.
- A Chinese electric crossover with 273 miles of range will be the first to join the fleet.
The robotaxi race is heating up in America and China, leaving Europe in the dust. But now, an unlikely team-up of companies is working to bring driverless taxis to the streets of Croatia, with the capital city of Zagreb getting first dibs.
Verne, Croatia’s surprise player in the robotaxi game, has partnered with ride-hailing giant Uber and China’s Pony.ai to deploy the first commercial driverless taxis in Europe. The three companies said that development work is already underway, including public-road validation, and that the commercial service will be available soon in Croatia’s capital city.
After receiving regulatory approvals and gaining sufficient real-world data, the plan is to expand the service to more European cities and other markets, with thousands of robotaxis scheduled to hit the streets over the next few years. That said, it’s unclear if there will be a safety monitor in the vehicle when the service goes live.
Verne, a subsidiary of Rimac Technology, came out of stealth in 2024, when it debuted a two-door autonomous pod without a steering wheel and pedals. The company will act as the fleet owner and service operator, but its funky steering wheel-less two-seater will have to wait a little longer before it goes under the spotlight.
The first vehicle to hit the road in Zagreb is the Chinese-made Arcfox Alpha T5, an electric crossover with up to 273 miles of WLTP range running Pony.ai’s seventh-generation autonomous driving system. Meanwhile, Uber will integrate the robotaxis into its global ride-hailing network, so riders will need to use the Uber app to get an autonomous robotaxi in Croatia.
Rimac Technology’s Verne will be the one that gets all the necessary regulatory approvals, while also coordinating the deployment of Pony.ai’s self-driving taxis across its own network, as well as Uber’s. As part of the partnership, Uber said it will invest in Verne and support the company’s expansion plans as a strategic partner, but an exact figure has not been disclosed.
This is just one of the robotaxi ventures that Uber is a big part of, with the ride-hailing company seemingly partnering with everyone, everywhere. The company has inked over 20 deals so far, including but not limited to Rivian, Volkswagen, Lucid, and Zoox.
