Stellantis Jumping into Robotaxi Development with New Partnership

Stellantis became the latest auto company to get into the autonomous mobility market, forming a new partnership with Wayve and Uber to develop self-driving vehicles for use as robotaxis in a global fleet.

The three companies are teaming up to develop Level 4 robotaxis that will initially be deployed in a dozen cities around the world, including London and Tokyo, later this year. The deal essentially builds on earlier agreements between Stellantis and Wayve as well as Wayve and Uber.

“This collaboration brings us closer to delivering a smarter, safer and more efficient mobility for our customers,” said Ned Curic, chief engineering and technology officer at Stellantis. 

“By combining our L4-Ready Platforms, designed from the ground up for safe and efficient driverless operation, with Wayve’s adaptive AI and Uber’s global network, we are accelerating the deployment of autonomous vehicles that meet real customer needs and enable seamless mobility at scale in everyday life.”

The new deal marries the strength of each company, including the of Level 4-read platforms from Stellantis that come with embedded sensor suites as well as already meeting other operational mandates for safety and redundancy, the company noted.

Wayve’s current AI-based driving software will be the basis for the new self-driving vehicles, which is designed to adapt to the different regions and driving conditions as well as the driving laws for those varied areas. Uber will deploy these autonomous vehicles on its global mobility network, connecting riders to autonomous trips through the Uber app and helping scale operations across markets.

The company will already be competing with a slew of existing robotaxi services in various stages of approval, including Waymo, Tesla, Zeeker, and others. Tesla has been using adapted versions of its Model Y until recently when the first street-ready versions of its Cyber Cab began rolling off its production line in Austin, Texas.

No timetable or pricing for the robotaxis produced by this new deal was revealed, nor was any indication if the service would get a specific name.

[Images: Stellantis, Tesla]

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