A Chinese self-driving car company says a government safety investigation has not disrupted its business operations, even as the review was triggered by problems with a competitor’s autonomous vehicles.
Pony.ai’s leadership announced Tuesday that the company has successfully navigated a national safety evaluation that began after rival firm Baidu’s Apollo Go robotaxis unexpectedly shut down while operating on streets in Wuhan during late March, according to Bloomberg’s reporting.
The government examination centers on how companies and municipal governments guarantee safe autonomous driving operations, explained James Peng, who co-founded Pony.ai and serves as its chief executive officer. Speaking with Reuters, Peng confirmed that his Guangzhou-headquartered firm has finished all required assessments and its operations “has not been impacted.”
Peng emphasized that the safety evaluation did not involve revoking existing permits, allowing the company to remain “in the process of launching into more cities” while planning fleet growth.
The autonomous vehicle firm announced plans to increase its robotaxi fleet to 3,500 vehicles before year-end, up from its current count of more than 1,700 cars. This represents a 16.7% increase from its previous goal of 3,000 vehicles, the company stated.
Financial projections also improved, with the company now anticipating full-year robotaxi revenue to surpass 3.5 times 2025 levels, higher than its earlier prediction of 3 times growth.
First quarter results showed the company’s best performance yet for its primary robotaxi business, with revenue climbing nearly five times to $8.6 million during the three-month period. Overall company revenue jumped 145% compared to the previous year, reaching $34.3 million.
“The whole industry still faces a lot of uncertainties, but at least we see strong momentum in fleet deployment both domestically and internationally,” Peng stated.
However, the company’s financial losses expanded to $53.5 million in the first quarter, compared to $37.4 million during the same period last year. The firm did achieve its first profitable quarter in Q4, mainly due to investment returns.
Pony.ai joins domestic competitors Baidu and WeRide in operating some of the world’s largest robotaxi services while working to establish international operations.
According to Counterpoint senior analyst Murtuza Ali, major cities throughout Europe, Asia, and the Middle East will likely see American, Chinese and regional companies competing for testing opportunities, service launches and market dominance.
The United Kingdom may become a significant competitive arena, with Baidu examining possibilities through partnerships with Uber and Lyft, while Alphabet’s Waymo and British startup Wayve also pursue that market.
When asked about UK opportunities, Peng called it “a very interesting market” but said his company is evaluating the possibility while “not confirming anything yet.”
