Chinese company launches first electric Toyota robotaxis
Chinese robotaxi operator Pony AI has started commercial production of a driverless vehicle in partnership with Toyota Motor, one of its backers.
The first of 1,000 all-electric and autonomous Toyota bZ4X compact crossovers has rolled off the assembly line at a joint venture between Toyota and Guangzhou Automobile Group, Pony AI said Monday in a statement.
The ramp-up will support Pony AI’s goal of expanding its total robotaxi fleet to more than 3,000 cars by the end of the year.
The bZ4X EV is one of three models the company is deploying in major Chinese cities that use its latest self-driving software.
American depositary receipts of Pony AI rose 4.4% as of 3:50 p.m. in New York.
Pony AI is one of several Chinese robotaxi firms, including Baidu Inc. and WeRide Inc., that are expanding service in their domestic market and abroad in places like Europe and the Middle East.
They’re developing similar technologies to US driverless firms such as Alphabet Inc.’s Waymo, Amazon.com’s Zoox and Tesla.
While Pony AI’s technology is capable of driverless navigation, humans are still sometimes required to help resolve problems and the ratio is currently one person for every 30 vehicles.
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