Robotaxi deployment in Southeast Asia accelerated through investment from Grab secured by WeRide
WeRide, a leading autonomous driving technology company, has announced its vision to gradually deploy thousands of robotaxis in Southeast Asia, subject to local regulations and societal readiness. This vision was shared by Han Xu, the company's founder and CEO.
In a significant move, WeRide has been authorised to operate robotaxi services and deploy robotaxis nationwide in Saudi Arabia, initially in Riyadh. This pilot operation is in partnership with Uber and its local partner Ai Driver.
The partnership between WeRide and Grab Holdings, a diversified super app in Southeast Asia, is another step forward. Grab plans to invest tens of millions of dollars in WeRide, with the investment expected to be completed by the first half of 2026. In return, Grab has secured tens of millions of dollars in equity investment commitments from WeRide.
Uber will also be investing an extra $100 million in WeRide as part of this strategic partnership. The investment is expected to close by the first half of 2026.
WeRide's autonomous driving technology will be applied to Grab's fleet management, vehicle matching, and route planning systems. The partnership aims to integrate WeRide's robotaxis into Grab's network, accelerating the large-scale deployment of L4 robotaxis and other autonomous vehicles in Southeast Asia.
WeRide's stock, WRD, is traded on NASDAQ, while Grab's stock, GRAB, is traded on various exchanges. WeRide is the only technology company in the world with autonomous driving licenses in six countries: Saudi Arabia, China, the United Arab Emirates, Singapore, France, and the United States.
The partnership also includes skills training for Grab drivers and local community members interested in career transitions in the autonomous driving industry. WeRide, founded in 2017 and one of China's earliest companies focused on advanced smart driving solutions, has already obtained the first local robotaxi autonomous driving license in Saudi Arabia.
This strategic partnership was built upon a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed by the two parties in March 2025. WeRide listed on NASDAQ on October 25, 2024. With these partnerships and investments, WeRide is poised to make a significant impact in the autonomous driving industry in Southeast Asia.
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