Chinese autonomous driving company WeRide announced on November 10 that it has received official approval from the UAE federal government to launch fully driverless Robotaxi operations in Abu Dhabi. The license, granted on October 31, allows the company to operate without onboard safety operators, marking the first city-level commercial license for Level 4 autonomous driving outside the United States.
The service will initially be available through the Uber and TXAI platforms, with further operational details expected to be announced in the coming weeks. The approval was issued by the Regulations Lab under the UAE Cabinet Secretariat, an authority responsible for evaluating innovative projects aimed at future economic development.
WeRide has been active in Abu Dhabi since 2021, partnering with TXAI to conduct public Robotaxi operations. In December 2024, the company and Uber launched a ride-hailing partnership, forming the largest commercial Robotaxi fleet outside China and the United States. By July 2025, the service area covered nearly half of Abu Dhabi’s core urban districts, including Al Reem Island and Al Maryah Island, and will expand by the end of 2025 to central zones such as Khalifa City, Masdar City, and downtown Abu Dhabi.
As of October 2025, WeRide’s Robotaxi fleet had accumulated nearly one million kilometers of road mileage. Since the second quarter of 2025, the company has been conducting fully driverless testing to validate system reliability, working closely with the Abu Dhabi Integrated Transport Centre (ITC) to complete safety and regulatory assessments.
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WeRide plans to expand its regional fleet to 1,000 fully driverless vehicles by 2026, with long-term ambitions to deploy several tens of thousands of Robotaxis across the Middle East by 2030.