Uber and China's Pony.ai Partner to Launch London Robotaxi Service

Uber and Chinese autonomous vehicle developer Pony.ai have announced plans to launch a commercial robotaxi service in London as part of a broader push to introduce driverless technology across Europe. The two companies confirmed that testing of Pony.ai's Gen-7 autonomous vehicles will commence in the British capital in the coming weeks. The venture marks a significant expansion into one of Europe's largest ride-hailing hubs.\n\nUnder the broader European agreement, the alliance intends to deploy 2,000 robotaxis across the continent. Uber aims to integrate autonomous vehicle trips across as many as 15 global cities by the end of 2026, with deployments balanced evenly between international and domestic United States markets. The operational structure in London will mirror previous rollouts where Pony.ai provides the core driving stack alongside specialized vehicle hardware, integrating directly into Uber’s dispatch platform.\n\nThe initiative follows an initial partnership formed in May 2025 targeting the Middle East, which subsequently extended to Europe with an August 2026 deployment in Zagreb, Croatia. In that deployment, Verne—a venture led by Rimac Group chief executive Mate Rimac—managed fleet operations utilizing Arcfox Alpha T5 vehicles co-developed with BAIC. Fleet ownership and operational management details for the upcoming London rollout have not yet been disclosed.\n\nPony.ai is not Uber’s sole autonomous partner in the United Kingdom. The ride-hailing giant previously backed British self-driving firm Wayve, participating in a $1.2 billion funding round with Microsoft and Nvidia, with Uber committing up to an additional $300 million contingent on local commercialization. Uber continues to pursue a multi-partner autonomous model internationally, maintaining independent commercial relationships with firms including Baidu and WeRide in Dubai.