The same day that General Motors announced that it would stop funding its beleaguered robotaxi company Cruise, one of China’s leading autonomous vehicle operators made a different sort of announcement. Pony.ai said it would expand its robotaxi fleet from about 250 to at least 1,000 vehicles in 2025, thanks to a partnership with GAC Aion, a division of one of China’s biggest automakers.
These protectionist trade policies could also slow the development of driverless cars in the US. Waymo, the leading robotaxi company, has said it would use a Chinese EV as its next-generation vehicle. The Zeekr-made vehicle was supposed to be a lower-cost option for the company, which has racked up billions of dollars in expenses over the years. Robotaxis could flounder without access to cheaply made EVs. Indeed, the public markets haven’t necessarily openly embraced Pony.