EVwire brief: WeRide, Uber, and AVOMO have received Spain's first national operating permit for Level 4 autonomous passenger vehicles from the Dirección General de Tráfico (DGT) under the ES-AV framework.
The permit authorizes an initial deployment of 20 WeRide GXR vehicles with in-vehicle specialists in the Greater Madrid region. Commercial operations in Spain are expected to begin by the end of 2026, following the completion of deployment preparations and necessary regulatory milestones.
The permit allows WeRide to begin deployment preparation activities, including mapping, route validation, and operational readiness testing in Greater Madrid. AVOMO, the autonomous vehicle division of Moove Cars Group, will handle fleet operations.
Jennifer Li, CFO at WeRide, confirmed the milestone:
Receiving this permit is a significant achievement for WeRide as it marks our ninth autonomous driving permit worldwide and a testament to our global leadership in commercializing autonomous vehicle services. […] We are one step closer to bringing autonomous mobility to Spain before the end of 2026.
Here is WeRide's announcement on X:
And here is Uber's post:
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AVOMO also celebrated the milestone on LinkedIn:
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Context:
WeRide and Uber announced their Madrid robotaxi pilot earlier this year, marking Spain's entry into the commercial autonomous vehicle market. The plan calls for hundreds of WeRide GXR vehicles accessible through the Uber app, starting with trained safety operators onboard and progressing to fully autonomous operation upon meeting performance benchmarks.
The WeRide-Uber partnership has been expanding rapidly across Europe. Just weeks after the Madrid announcement, WeRide and Uber announced plans to bring robotaxi service to Zurich, pending Swiss regulatory approval.
Source: BusinessWire, WeRide and Uber on X, and AVOMO on LinkedIn
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