Uber’s launches first European robotaxi service in Croatia

Uber, in collaboration with Silicon Valley autonomous vehicle builder Pony AI and Croatian mobility company Verne, has launched its first robotaxi service in Europe. The service, available in Zagreb, Croatia's capital city, began as a phased rollout where human operators are present behind the wheel. This marks the world's first instance of autonomous rides available through Uber in Europe.

In the future, the service is expected to grow with additional robotaxis in four European cities. The partnership between the companies began in 2025, with the first collaboration bringing Pony's robotaxis onto Uber's platform in international markets outside the US. Earlier this year, they joined forces with Verne to test Pony's Gen-7 autonomous driving system in Zagreb, achieving commercial scale and unit economics breakeven in China's Guangzhou and Shenzhen.

Verne had already launched AV booking services in Zagreb, and the new service now integrates Verne as the fleet owner and service operator with Uber's ride-hailing network. Marko Pejkovic, CEO of Verne, emphasized that this marks a European first, bringing autonomous rides to Uber in Europe. Uber expects human drivers and AVs to coexist and grow together, with many journeys continuing to require human drivers while AVs are trained.

Riders can access the service through UberX or Comfort options on the Uber app. The launch in Zagreb is seen as an important milestone for autonomous mobility in Europe, with Uber aiming to bring AVs to millions of riders and build the world's largest platform for AV deployment. The company plans to expand robotaxis to London, Madrid, Munich, Hong Kong, and several US cities, already operating in Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Riyadh, Atlanta, Austin, and Dallas.

Other existing partnerships include May Mobility, Lucid, Nuro, China's Baidu, WeRide, and the UK's Wayve for AV testing and deployment worldwide.