Uber CEO Tests Driverless Verne Robotaxi Ahead Of Steering-Wheel-Free Global Rollout

Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi has paid an official visit to the Verne and Rimac Campus in Zagreb, Croatia, as he explores further opportunities in their joint autonomous ride-hailing project, including a future robotaxi without a steering wheel.

Currently valued at a massive $140 billion, San Francisco-based Uber—a financial valuation that exceeds Croatia’s entire national Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of $106 billion—remains a crucial strategic partner and key investor in the Verne project.

During his high-profile visit to Zagreb, Khosrowshahi took a ride as a passenger in a fully autonomous Verne robotaxi operating on public city roads without a human safety driver sitting behind the wheel.

Taking to social media to share photos and details of their landmark meeting, Bugatti Rimac founder and CEO Mate Rimac revealed that the Uber chief executive was thoroughly impressed with the driverless ride.

“Dara tried a robotaxi without a safety driver in Zagreb and was delighted with the experience. We talked about further cooperation and spreading of Verne outside Croatia with the “final” Verne car without steering wheel and pedals,” Rimac stated.

The high-level discussions focused on expanding Verne’s autonomous mobility services far beyond Croatian borders for global commercial deployment, as well as developing the final production version of the driverless vehicle without a steering wheel and pedals.

Partnership

In March 2026, Verne, Pony.ai and Uber announced a strategic partnership to launch a commercial robotaxi service in Zagreb, with plans to expand a fleet of over 2,000 robotaxis across multiple European cities over the following years.

Under the ongoing arrangement, China’s Pony.ai provides the automotive-grade hardware system, Rimac’s autonomous mobility brand, Verne, serves as the fleet owner and operator, while Uber provides its global ride-hailing platform.

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