Pony.ai, an autonomous robo-taxi startup, has announced a new joint venture with Neom, a futuristic urban development in northwest Saudi Arabia, to expand its autonomous operations into the Middle East, according to a report published by TechCrunch on October 26. The JV includes a $100 million investment from Neom Investment Fund (NIF) in Pony.ai, with plans to establish a regional headquarters and manufacturing facilities in Saudi Arabia. The partnership aims to develop, manufacture and operate a fleet of autonomous driving services, including advanced electric vehicles, in Neom and other key markets in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA).
According to Terry Wong, executive director of land mobility at Neom, the investment in Pony.ai is a crucial part of Neom's ambitious plans to build a smart, zero-emission and autonomous multimodal transport system. James Peng, co-founder and CEO of Pony.ai, expressed excitement about the partnership, stating that it marks a significant milestone for Pony.ai's global aspirations and vision of autonomous mobility everywhere.
While neither party provided a specific timeline for the rollout of Pony.ai's robo-taxi operations in Neom and the rest of MENA, the partnership represents a significant expansion of Pony.ai's operations and a major step toward realizing its vision of a future with widespread autonomous mobility.
