Shares of WeRide (WRD), the Chinese autonomous driving firm backed by Nvidia (NVDA), accelerated over 5% on Monday morning after the company announced it has secured permission to go fully driverless in Abu Dhabi.
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The update marks the latest milestone by the Chinese company, which has tapped American ride-hailing service Uber (UBER), in its effort to place “hundreds of thousands” of new vehicles on the road. In late October, WeRide launched its driverless robotaxi in Saudi Arabia in partnership with Uber.
WeRide and Uber to Launch Operator-Free Self-Driving
The new permission means that WeRide and Uber can commence driverless operations in the United Arab Emirates city without needing to provide an on-board safety driver. Its previous robotaxi service, launched in December 2024 in partnership with Uber, required an in-vehicle safety officer.
WeRide has been providing its robotaxi service in Abu Dhabi since 2021, in collaboration with TXAI, an autonomous taxi service owned by the emirate. The Chinese company plans to expand its driverless service to most of Abu Dhabi’s central area before year-end.
In Saudi Arabia, WeRide and Uber’s robotaxi service currently requires a safety operator. However, the companies expect to progress to a fully driverless service in the future.
Competition Rises in Autonomous Driving Race
WeRide is fast rising to compete against global companies working to dominate the driverless market. This market includes companies such as electric carmaker Tesla (TSLA), Alphabet’s (GOOGL) Waymo autonomous driving startup, and Chinese rival Xpeng (XPEV).
The company’s driverless service is currently available in several cities in China in designated areas. As of October, WeRide operated 700 driverless taxis globally and supplies its technology to Chinese automakers such as GAC Motor and Chery Automobile.
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