Stellantis and Pony.ai partner to develop robotaxis in Europe
Stellantis and Pony.ai have announced a partnership to jointly develop and test SAE Level 4 (hands-off, eyes-off) autonomous vehicles in Europe. The collaboration will integrate Stellantis’ AV-Ready Platform with Pony.ai’s autonomous driving technology, initially focusing on battery-electric medium-size vans, suitable for robotaxi services.
The programme will begin with real-world testing in Luxembourg using vehicles based on the Peugeot e-Traveller model, with a gradual expansion to other European cities from 2026. Testing will assess safety, performance and regulatory readiness. Stellantis’ Pro One business unit, which leads the European light commercial vehicle (LCV) market, provides a platform for scalable autonomous mobility solutions.
“Driverless vehicles have the potential to transform the way people move in our cities, offering safer and more affordable options for communities,” said Ned Curic, Stellantis Chief Engineering & Technology Officer. “To bring this vision to life, we’ve built Stellantis’ AV-Ready Platforms and are partnering with the best players in the industry. Pony.ai stands out for their technical expertise and collaborative approach.”
Stellantis says its AV-Ready Platform has been engineered to support Level 4 operations, incorporating system redundancies and compatibility with advanced sensor suites. This enables “hands-off, eyes-off” functionality while meeting high safety and reliability standards. The combination of Stellantis’ platform and Pony.ai’s autonomous software is intended to deliver scalable and efficient urban mobility solutions.
The initial focus will be on light commercial vehicles, the partnership is expected to provide a foundation for broader autonomous mobility applications, potentially including services for both goods and passenger transport.
“We are delighted to partner with Stellantis to bring our autonomous mobility technology to Europe,” added James Peng, Pony.ai Founder and CEO. “Their strong European presence and portfolio of iconic brands make them the ideal partner to help accelerate our growth in this key market.”
Pony.ai, founded in 2016, develops vehicle-agnostic autonomous systems under its Virtual Driver technology. The company operates across Europe, China, East Asia and the Middle East, providing full-stack software, hardware and services for large-scale deployment of autonomous vehicles. The company is one of the four largest players in the field of autonomous driving in China, alongside Baidu subsidiary Apollo Go, WeRide and Momenta.
In May, Pony.ai also announced a partnership with Uber with the aim of offering autonomous vehicles in the Middle East via the Uber app. A few weeks ago, Pony.ai was also given permission to test its robotaxis in Dubai.
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