Pony.ai and Uber will roll out more than 2,000 autonomous vehicles across Europe, a dramatic escalation of their push to make robotaxis a mainstream transportation option beyond China and the United States.
The partnership, announced Aug. 14, 2026, extends a collaboration that began last year with the launch of Europe’s first commercial robotaxi service in Zagreb, Croatia. That operation, which involved Croatian mobility firm Verne as the local fleet owner, now serves as a template for a much wider deployment.
Four additional European cities will join Zagreb under the expanded agreement, with Middle East expansion also on the roadmap. Rollout specifics will emerge in phases, the companies said.
Under the deal’s structure, Pony.ai supplies the Level 4 autonomous driving technology along with rider experience and operational knowledge built through multiple large-scale deployments in China. Uber contributes customer access through its global mobility platform, handling booking, payment, and support services. Local fleet partners selected for each market will manage day-to-day vehicle operations.
This joint-deployment model separates vehicle ownership from technology and platform functions, allowing different partners to hold fleet responsibility depending on local conditions. Pony.ai executives said the arrangement provides a clearer route to commercial scale than pursuing expansion alone.
Pony.ai already operates paid, fully driverless services in China’s four tier-one cities and has achieved citywide breakeven unit economics in multiple markets. That track record, combined with Uber’s reach across Europe, positions the partnership to test whether robotaxi economics can work beyond China’s regulatory and infrastructure environment.
“By combining Pony.ai’s proven autonomous driving technology and operational know-how with Uber’s global mobility platform and extensive market reach, we aim to build sustained commercial operations at scale across Europe and beyond,” said Dr. James Peng, Pony.ai founder and CEO.
Sarfraz Maredia, Uber’s global head of autonomous mobility and delivery, framed the deal as a shift from isolated launches toward repeatable commercial operations. The question now: whether European regulators and riders embrace robotaxis at the pace both companies are betting on.
