Gasgoo Munich- WeRide, Uber, and AVOMO, the autonomous driving division of Moove Cars Group, announced on September 10 that they had received Spain's first permit for operating Level 4 autonomous passenger vehicles under the Spanish Directorate-General for Traffic's ES-AV framework. Supported by the Madrid government, the authorization allows the three companies to deploy vehicles on public roads.
Image source: WeRide
The approval marks Spain's first national-level authorization for Level 4 Robotaxi deployment, clearing a key regulatory hurdle for the country's first commercial Robotaxi service as it moves closer to launch.
Spain is one of Europe's largest mobility markets, receiving nearly 100 million tourist visits annually. Strong commuting demand and an established ride-hailing sector in Madrid provide a commercial foundation for autonomous mobility services. Madrid is the fourth city covered by WeRide and Uber's strategic partnership, through which the companies plan to expand their Robotaxi operations to 15 cities worldwide and deploy tens of thousands of vehicles by 2030.
Subject to completing preparations and meeting applicable operational and regulatory requirements, WeRide, Uber and AVOMO expect to launch a public commercial Robotaxi service in Madrid during 2026. Passengers will be able to request a WeRide Robotaxi through the Uber app. The partners plan to expand the service area as operational targets are met, with the longer-term aim of introducing fully driverless commercial operations across central Madrid.
The Madrid project follows WeRide's asset-light international expansion model, combining its autonomous driving technology with Uber's global mobility platform and AVOMO's fleet operations and management capabilities. The partnership is intended to establish a model that can be replicated as Robotaxi services scale in other major markets.
Initial deployment and testing will begin under the permit, laying the groundwork for future commercial services within the DGT's ES-AV framework. The first phase will involve dozens of Robotaxi GXR vehicles equipped with WeRide's latest autonomous driving technology. Testing will cover several high-demand areas of Madrid, with a safety operator aboard each vehicle.
The authorization is the first national-level autonomous driving permit secured by the Robotaxi GXR in the European Union and could provide a regulatory reference for future certification and commercialization in other European markets. WeRide said its products now hold autonomous driving permits in nine countries: China, Spain, Switzerland, Belgium, France, Singapore, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and the United States.
Madrid is the first European city where WeRide and Uber plan to launch commercial Robotaxi operations. The companies announced the Madrid service in June 2026 and named Zurich as the second European city covered by their partnership later that month. Public Robotaxi operations in Zurich are also scheduled to begin during 2026.
WeRide plans to continue developing an operating framework tailored to Europe and expand its fully driverless Robotaxi services into additional markets, with the aim of building a scalable network spanning multiple cities worldwide.
