California Permits Passenger Testing For Chinese Robotaxi Firm WeRide

Tom Jowitt,
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More self-driving competition. Approval granted for WeRide to begin robotaxi testing with passengers in California

Utility regulator in California allows China-based autonomous driving startup WeRide to begin testing its robotaxis in the US state.

Reuters reported that a permit has been issued by the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), allowing the firm to test its driverless vehicles with passengers, but with certain restrictions.

The CPUC approval brings another driverless robotaxi player into the US market, where it will compete with the likes of Alphabet’s Waymo, GM’s Cruise, and Amazon’s Zoox.

WeRide Robotaxi.
Image credit WeRide

Robotaxi permit

Specifically, it seems the three year CPUC permit issued earlier this month will allow WeRide to ferry passengers in test vehicles with a driver and without one.

However WeRide will not be allowed to offer rides to the general public, and it cannot charge any fares.

WeRide rold Reuters it has 12 active vehicles and will operate in San Jose and nearby areas.

WeRide Robotaxi.
Image credit WeRide

WeRide was founded in 2017 in China, and first received permits from California to test its vehicles without passengers in 2021.

The company also makes autonomous vans, buses and street sweepers, and has driverless permits in Singapore and the United Arab Emirates.

According to Reuters, WeRide is currently seeking a valuation of as much as $5 billion from its New York IPO, despite the US reportedly preparing to ban vehicles with China-developed systems.

Robotaxi competition

If WeRide is allowed to continue operating in the US market, it face well-established local players that are also developing and commercialising robotaxis.

Alphabet’s Waymo has about 700 vehicles in its fleet, and is the only US firm currently operating uncrewed robotaxis that collect fares, after it announced in June it was opening the Waymo One service to all residents of San Francisco, after similar move in Phoenix in 2020.

The opening of the Waymo One service to all San Fran residents came after the US safety regulator, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), had said in May that its investigation of Waymo self-driving vehicles had uncovered more incidents that raised concerns.

General Motors’ Cruise meanwhile had restarted testing with safety drivers earlier this year, after one of its vehicles hit a pedestrian last year, when the person was thrown underneath the vehicle after being struck by a separate hit and run driver.

Amazon’s Zoox in June began testing testing its self-driving robotaxis in Austin, Texas, and Miami, as it expands beyond its existing California and Nevada test regions.