EVwire brief: WeRide and Uber plan to launch a commercial robotaxi service in the Greater Zurich Region later this year, their second European market announced in the space of a few weeks.
Rides will run through the Uber app at launch, subject to regulatory approval, in coordination with Switzerland's Federal Roads Office (FEDRO). A local operator, Rydera, will handle the day-to-day fleet under WeRide's asset-light model.
“Europe is a priority region for WeRide, and announcing two European markets in two weeks reflects the speed and efficiency of our expansion strategy. Zurich’s status as a global business centre and premium mobility market makes it an attractive city for Robotaxi commercialization as we scale autonomous mobility with Uber worldwide.”
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Zurich is not new ground for WeRide. Last November, the company secured a driverless permit from FEDRO to run autonomous vehicles on public roads in the city's Furttal area, work built on its WeRide One platform and GENESIS simulation system.
The partners are carrying over a record built in the Gulf. Since December 2024, they have put a fully driverless service on the road in Abu Dhabi and Dubai and public operations in Riyadh, the blueprint they are now applying in Europe.
Context:
The Zurich plan comes just two weeks after WeRide and Uber named Madrid as Spain's first commercial robotaxi pilot, which WeRide called its fifth European market entry. Both deals lean on the same asset-light split: WeRide supplies the autonomy, Uber brings the riders, and AVOMO, a local partner, runs the fleet.
With Zurich, WeRide and Uber now operate in five of the 15 cities covered by their expanded agreement, part of a plan to deploy tens of thousands of robotaxis worldwide.
WeRide bills itself as the first publicly traded robotaxi company, with vehicles in more than 40 cities across 12 countries and driverless permits in eight markets. Uber's Sarfraz Maredia called Switzerland "a key market for autonomous mobility," and the move was no surprise on our end: Jaan pegged Zurich as a likely next stop in our Robotaxi Report.
Source: WeRide
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