EVwire brief: WeRide and Uber are bringing robotaxis to Madrid, in what they call Spain's first commercial robotaxi pilot.
The service is set to start later this year through the Uber app, run with fleet operator AVOMO and in partnership with Madrid's regional government.
It begins with trained safety operators on board. The partners say they'll add hundreds of vehicles and move to fully driverless service as they hit performance milestones.
WeRide and Uber's GXR robotaxi
The cars are WeRide's GXR robotaxis, built on its WeRide One platform. WeRide, the first publicly traded robotaxi company, says its vehicles run in more than 40 cities across 12 countries.
WeRide founder and CEO Dr. Tony Han said:
Launching driverless Robotaxis in Madrid, one of Europe's fastest-growing urban environments, demonstrates our ability to operate safely in complex real-world conditions. Spain is our fifth European market entry and further strengthens our position as a trusted Robotaxi operator across the continent.
Context:
The fleet in Madrid comes from AVOMO, a Moove Cars Group company that already operates Uber's autonomous cars in Austin and Atlanta, around 400 of them with a team of more than 200.
That split is the whole idea behind WeRide's "asset-light" model: WeRide supplies the self-driving system, a partner puts up and runs the fleet, and Uber brings the riders.
Madrid also builds on WeRide and Uber's Middle East record. The two already run fully driverless commercial services in Abu Dhabi and Dubai, with Riyadh expected to follow.
Madrid is the fourth of 15 cities WeRide and Uber agreed to launch together, with 11 more targeted by 2030 and a stated goal of tens of thousands of robotaxis worldwide.
It also fits a fast-filling European map. Uber already has the Pony.ai and Verne service live in Zagreb, the Autobrains pilot it just announced for Munich, and Wayve trials lined up in London.
What stands out is how little of this Uber actually owns. WeRide builds the driver, AVOMO buys and runs the fleet, the regional government clears the road, and Uber supplies the riders. It's a way to be everywhere at once without putting a car on its books, unlike the plays in the US with both Rivian and Lucid. This deal fits in more as the “AV Facilitator” play, just offering the demand platform.
Source: WeRide and Uber's joint announcement.
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