Uber announced a strategic partnership with three Chinese self-driving startups to deploy their tech on the Uber platform and bring it to the international markets. The partnership focuses on European markets and the Middle East, while steering clear of China and the US.

The three Chinese startups are Pony.ai, Momenta, and WeRide.

The first deployment of the Momenta-powered robotaxis on the Uber platform will occur in Europe at the beginning of 2026. Safety operators will be on board in the first phase of operations. Uber announced its partnership with Moementa on May 2.

“This collaboration enables more riders worldwide to experience affordable autonomous mobility,” said Dara Khosrowshahi, CEO, Uber.

Momenta is a Chinese autonomous driving startup founded in September 2016. It is backed by SAIC Motor, General Motors, or Toyota. Since 2021, it has provided self-driving software to SAIC’s premium brand IM.

Pony.ai was the latest to announce cooperation with a US car-hailing giant, claiming the first Uber robotaxis powered by their tech will launch in the Middle East by the end of the year, with other international markets to follow. Once available, ride-requesting Uber users can choose a human driver or Pony.ai autonomous vehicles. In the pilot phase, there will be an operator on board.

“Partnering with Uber accelerates our shared mission to make autonomous mobility a reality,” said Dr. James Peng, CEO of Pony.ai. We will start in the Middle East before expanding to new markets,” Peng continued.

“Our partnership with Pony.ai is another step towards introducing autonomous mobility to the world,” said Dara Khosrowshahi, CEO of Uber.

Pony.ai is backed by Toyota and Nio and was founded in December 2016 by James Peng and Tiancheng Lou, former developers at Baidu. It is headquartered in Guangzhou and holds permits for driverless ride-hailing services in Beijing and Guangzhou.

WeRide is another Chinese autonomous driving company offering its robotaxis on the Uber platform. The companies already announced strategic cooperation in September 2024 and today announced that their fleet in Abu Dhabi will reach 50 robotaxis by mid-2025. Uber and WeRide plan to expand to several new cities yearly, covering 15 cities in the next five years, including Europe.

WeRide is backed by Bosch, Nvidia or Blackrock and was founded in 2017 in Guangzhou by Tony Han, former chief of autonomous driving unit in Baidu. The company currently holds autonomous driving permits in China, the US, the UAE and Singapore.