Uber is partnering with China’s WeRide to offer autonomous vehicle rides in Abu Dhabi, the companies announced on Friday.
To start, each WeRide robotaxi that’s hailed via the Uber app will come with a human driver present “to ensure a secure and reliable experience for riders and pedestrians,” Uber said in a press statement. They aim to offer a fully driverless commercial service later in 2025 in Abu Dhabi.
The robotaxis will begin operating between Saadiyat Island and Yas Island, as well as routes to and from Zayed International Airport.
Uber’s partner in the U.A.E., WeRide, is a Chinese autonomous vehicle developer. It’s listed on the Nasdaq and also holds permits for driverless vehicle testing, or both testing and operations, in Dubai, China, Singapore and the U.S., per its website.
On a Q3 earnings call in late October, Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi boasted that the ride-hailing and delivery platform has secured partnerships with more than a dozen different autonomous vehicle companies.
“Our autonomous strategy is working,” he said, adding, “AV partners are clearly understanding the significant value Uber can bring to their deployment plans.”
Uber was already facilitating tens of thousands of autonomous vehicle rides per month in the U.S. before its U.A.E. expansion, a company spokesperson told CNBC.
In a note from Redburn Atlantic on Wednesday, analyst James Cordwell identified potential “structural risk from autonomous vehicles” for Uber’s core mobility business, with Alphabet-owned Waymo standing out as both a partner and potential competitive threat to Uber in the U.S. today.
“We believe autonomy will significantly expand the addressable market and Uber is well positioned to be the aggregator of autonomous vehicle providers,” Cordwell wrote. The firm has a buy rating on shares of Uber with a 2025 year-end price target of $90.