Dubai is gearing up to launch its first fleet of driverless taxis, with a trial phase of 50 autonomous vehicles set to begin in the coming months, the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) announced.
The move is part of a new partnership between the RTA and Baidu’s autonomous ride-hailing platform, Apollo Go. Under the signed Memorandum of Understanding, Apollo Go will introduce its latest sixth-generation RT6 model, equipped with 40 sensors and detectors to boost automation and safety.
“This initiative supports Dubai’s Smart Self-Driving Transport Strategy,” said Mattar Al Tayer, Director General and Chairman of the Board of Executive Directors at RTA. “We are committed to enhancing Dubai’s global leadership in autonomous mobility by trialling various types of autonomous vehicles, air taxis, and marine transport.”
The data collection and testing phase will initially involve 50 vehicles, with plans to scale up to 1,000 driverless taxis over the next three years.
This marks Apollo Go’s first venture outside of China and Hong Kong. So far, the company has completed over 150 million kilometers in safe autonomous driving and logged more than 10 million trips across Chinese cities. It also operates fully driverless services at scale in select areas.
Dubai’s long-term goal is to make 25 percent of all trips in the city autonomous by 2030.
