Uber, WeRide's Abu Dhabi Robotaxi Service Is Now Driverless

Uber and WeRide's robotaxi service in Abu Dhabi is now officially driverless, and customers in the city who book their rides via the platforms will no longer see drivers when they get picked up.

Uber, WeRide's Abu Dhabi Robotaxi Is Now Driverless

Earlier this week, Uber shared an announcement that officially marked their first fully driverless ride-hailing experience in a region outside the United States in partnership with China's WeRide.

The robotaxi service Uber and WeRide launched in Abu Dhabi several years ago was not yet fully driverless as the city's transportation regulator previously required human operators behind the wheel.

However, according to the ride-hailing company, Abu Dhabi's Integrated Transport Centre has launched the initiative to endorse the partner company's service to deliver fully driverless rides in the region. According to Uber, this initiative marks a major milestone in the United Arab Emirates' smart mobility vision.

There are also other milestones that this rollout has achieved as this marks the first city outside the United States to see a fully driverless robotaxi permit on a city-level scale. Additionally, it is also the first city in the Middle East to roll out a fully driverless deployment for a robotaxi service, with the country looking to further expand this in the future.

Local fleet operator, Tawasul, also partners with Uber and WeRide on this venture, with the trio having already its driverless robotaxi rides in the city.

No More Human Safety Operators for Uber, WeRide

According to Uber, this latest deployment would first start with Yas Island, a district within the city that serves as home to its Grand PrixFormula 1 racing circuit.

For now, it will focus on the limited routes on Yas Island and will serve both locals and tourists who only need the Uber app to get paired with a WeRide vehicle to experience this driverless experience.

According to Uber, riders who select the UberComfort ride may be potentially matched with a WeRide robotaxi to experience the driverless rides around the area or city.

However, for those who want to increase their chances of booking a driverless WeRide robotaxi, Uber said that they may tick the "Autonomous" option in the Uber app to get the experience.

Uber recently partnered with Waymo to expand the driverless ride-hailing service experience in Austin, similar to its setup with WeRide for Abu Dhabi. Uber has also partnered with Baidu to launch a self-driving ride-hailing service in China as part of its massive rollout in different countries with partner companies.