Fully driverless robotaxis now operating in Europe

Croatian autonomous mobility company Verne and Chinese driverless platform vendor Pony.ai are now offering fully driverless robotaxi test rides in Zagreb, the Croatian capital.

The development marks a breakthrough for both the project itself and self-driving taxis in Europe generally, as it is the first time that passengers will be carried unaccompanied by a human safety monitor behind the steering wheel. It is a stark difference, for example, from the service currently being tested in London by Uber and Wayve, where a human supervisor is present at all times.

At this phase of the Croatian program, not only is there no one at the wheel, but the vehicle has also been stripped of the front passenger seat to create a more open cabin, extra luggage capacity and room for a large display. A central console between the rear seats includes a touchscreen for ride management.

The interior is “designed not as a concept for the distant future, but as something that can work in real service,” enabling riders to use their time in a way “that is more productive, more enjoyable, and more relaxing,” Marko Pejković, CEO of Verne, said in a statement.

The first driverless robotaxis to operate, based on Chinese automaker BAIC’s Arcfox Alpha T5, an electric SUV, will cover a 13.6-mile route linking a major business district to the city’s Franjo Tuđman airport.

The driverless phase of the program will be open to invited passengers and work adjacent to the commercial service, launched in April, which will continue to use human safety monitors. That can be booked using Uber; so far, the Verne fleet has covered more than 124,274 miles and completed several thousand passenger rides in the city, according to the company.

The self-driving taxis -- whether driverless or accompanied by humans -- use Pony.ai’s seventh-generation autonomous driving system, which combines AI with 360-degree sensor coverage, including nine lidar units, 14 cameras, and 4 millimeter-wave radars.

The tech is used extensively in China, where Pony.ai now operates fully driverless commercial services in four cities. The company recently revealed plans to deploy more than 4,000 robotaxis outside China as part of its expansion ambitions.

The milestone comes a few days after reports that the project, for which Verne received about $103 million of EU backing under Croatia’s National Recovery and Resilience Plan, will be assessed to see whether it has met the conditions that were laid out as part of that funding.