Uber Technologies, Inc., Verne and Pony AI Inc. announced the launch of autonomous rides on the Uber app in Zagreb, Croatia, marking the first time riders in Europe can book an AV with Uber.
Riders can book an autonomous ride within key areas of Zagreb, including the city center, with service availability and geographic coverage set to grow over time. A licensed operator will monitor behind the wheel before the service expands to fully driverless operations.
Under this model, Pony.ai provides its autonomous driving solution, Verne acts as fleet owner and service operator and Uber integrates the service into its ride-hailing network.
The launch builds on the partnership announced in March, moving the service from development and testing to real-world deployment on Uber. Zagreb became the first market to launch under the partnership and provides a model that the companies plan to scale to additional European cities. Further details on the next markets to launch will be announced later this year.
“Verne launched Europe’s first commercial robotaxi service in Zagreb in April,” Verne CEO Marko Pejkovic said. “Since then, we have completed thousands of autonomous rides, operating every day and learning from real customers in a real European city.”
Riders can access the service by opening the Uber app and requesting UberX or Comfort. When an AV is available, the app will provide information about the vehicle and instructions for starting and completing the trip.
