Uber, Pony.ai Plan 2,000 Europe Robotaxis as Partnership Expands to Middle East

Q: With revenues surging, which four mystery European cities are secretly preparing for Uber and Pony.ai's massive autonomous vehicle invasion?

They have not been publicly identified. Uber and Pony.ai said only that robotaxis will be added to four more European cities, but they did not name the locations or provide a timeline. The reporting and related material point to a broader European buildout rather than any confirmed quartet of cities. Zagreb, Croatia, is the only named European city already operating the service, launched in late March as what the companies called Europe’s first commercial robotaxi operation. Beyond that, Pony.ai has separately been testing in Luxembourg with Bolt and Stellantis, but that has not been announced as one of the four Uber-Pony.ai expansion cities. Other European cities mentioned in the wider robotaxi race are tied to different partners, not this specific Pony.ai expansion. Madrid is linked to Uber’s separate WeRide partnership. London is associated with Waymo and Wayve activity. Munich appears in Uber’s Autobrains plans. None of those have been confirmed as part of the four-city Pony.ai rollout. What is clear is the scale and direction of the expansion. Uber and Pony.ai plan to deploy 2,000 robotaxis across Europe and extend into the Middle East. Pony.ai’s recent revenue surge and fleet growth help explain the push: the company reported Q1 2026 revenue up 145% year over year, with robotaxi revenue up nearly 395%, and said its fleet had exceeded 1,700 vehicles. So the short answer is that the “four mystery cities” remain undisclosed for now.

3 articles · Updated · CNBC · Aug 14

Uber and Pony.ai said they will deploy 2,000 self-driving taxis across Europe and extend their robotaxi partnership into the Middle East, marking a major scale-up from their initial launch in Zagreb.
Four additional European cities are slated for rollout, though the companies did not name them or give a timetable; they say larger fleets are crucial for collecting safety data, improving efficiency and attracting riders.
The push fits Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi’s strategy to make Uber the leading commercialization platform for autonomous vehicles by pooling operating data with partners to speed development.
Competition is intensifying: Waymo has about 5,000 vehicles globally and is testing in London, while Baidu Apollo Go and WeRide are also expanding European plans, often through Uber partnerships.