A year after introducing a commercial robotaxi service in Abu Dhabi, Chinese autonomous vehicle technology company WeRide and Uber have made it fully driverless. The service, now open to the public without a human safety operator, will initially operate on Yas Island, home to the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix Formula 1 circuit.

Uber riders in Abu Dhabi who select Uber Comfort or UberX may be matched with a WeRide robotaxi. For those seeking a fully autonomous experience, the “Autonomous” option in the Uber app increases the chances of being matched with a driverless vehicle. The service is operated in partnership with fleet operator Tawasul.

The launch follows WeRide securing a federal permit from the UAE to conduct fully driverless commercial operations. Uber and WeRide plan to expand the service to Abu Dhabi’s city center. “Today’s fully autonomous launch in Abu Dhabi represents a historic transportation milestone, as the first driverless AV deployment outside of the U.S. or China,” said Sarfraz Maredia, Uber’s head of autonomous mobility and delivery.

Uber has formed partnerships with 20 autonomous vehicle technology companies worldwide, covering applications from robotaxis to delivery and trucking. Recent collaborations include companies such as May Mobility, Volkswagen, Momenta, Pony.ai, Baidu, and Nuro, as well as a premium robotaxi service using Lucid Gravity SUVs.

The Abu Dhabi launch follows Uber’s earlier driverless robotaxi service with Waymo in Austin, Texas, and represents a key step in Uber’s global autonomous vehicle expansion. The company aims to deploy autonomous vehicles in at least 10 cities by the end of 2026, with plans to eventually operate thousands of WeRide robotaxis across 15 cities in the Middle East and Europe.