Uber Teams with Pony.ai to Expand European Robotaxi Footprint

UBER has partnered with PONY and Croatian startup Verne (under the Rimac Group) to launch Europe's first commercial robotaxi service in Zagreb, Croatia, with on-road testing underway and a planned launch in H2 2026. The three-party structure has Pony.ai providing its Gen-7 autonomous driving technology, Verne operating the fleet, and Uber integrating the service into its global ride-hailing platform.

Pony.ai, which went public on NASDAQ in November 2024 at a ~$7 billion valuation, is pursuing a capital-efficient expansion strategy. The company reported 160% year-over-year robotaxi revenue growth in Q4 2025 and plans to triple its fleet to over 3,000 vehicles by the end of 2026. Its shares rose 2.8% on the partnership announcement, while Uber dipped 1.3% as investors weighed the near-term investment against longer-term autonomous mobility potential.

The Zagreb deployment positions all three partners to establish first-mover advantage in European autonomous mobility, a market that remains largely untapped compared to the US (where Waymo leads) and China (where Pony.ai has achieved unit economics breakeven in tier-1 cities). Morgan Stanley and Citi maintained Buy ratings on Uber, citing the partnership as complementary to its core Mobility and Delivery segments. The partners plan to expand to additional European cities pending the Zagreb proof of concept.