Uber is preparing the first robotaxi launch in Europe. Will its strategy be successful?

Global cab service Uber has announced plans to launch its robot cabs in Europe: they will hit the roads in Germany in 2026, with Munich being the first city. Uber will test robot cars created by Chinese developer Momenta. The company has abandoned the creation of its unmanned cars in favor of partnerships with other companies and competes in the robotaxi market with companies such as Tesla and Google.

Uber and Chinese unmanned car startup Momenta plan to start testing robotaxis in Germany in 2026, according to a post on Momenta's website. Munich will be the first city in continental Europe for both companies to start rides. The partners plan to enter other markets in the future, TechCrunch reported.

Initially, the Momenta-powered cars will have drivers in them, monitoring traffic and ready to take over if necessary. Uber said it chose Munich as its European base because of the city's engineering tradition and strong car ecosystem. But Momenta has yet to prove to German regulators that its cars meet certain safety standards, as well as get approval to drive in certain areas (special geofences), TechCrunch writes.

"Germany has shaped the global auto industry for more than a century, and now Munich will help define its future with autonomous vehicles," said Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi, as quoted by Momenta.

Uber's shares were up almost 2% in trading on September 8. Since the beginning of the year, they have risen in price by more than 53%.

Uber's decision puts the company in direct competition with other cab services entering the European market of unmanned cars. Thus, in August, Lyft announced an agreement with Chinese tech giant and AI developer Baidu to launch robotaxis in Europe as early as next year, starting with Germany and the UK, TechCrunch writes.

Internationally, Uber is partnering with Momenta and other Chinese drone technology startups such as WeRide and Pony.ai to launch robotaxis on its platform in the Middle East. Currently, Uber and WeRide already offer drone rides in Abu Dhabi and Riyadh, with plans to enter Dubai in the future. Uber and U.K.-based Wayve also recently announced plans to begin public road trials of Level 4 autonomous vehicles in London.

Momenta is among Uber's 20 global partners in unmanned transportation, delivery and trucking. According to the company, these alliances are already delivering a combined annual pace of 1.5 million rides and deliveries.

The launch of a robotaxi in Munich could be Momenta's first European project, TechCrunch notes. In Shanghai, the company is already conducting test rides on the roads, and plans to launch a full commercial service with safety operators in the cabin by the end of this year. Momenta is developing Level 4 autonomous technologies (a vehicle can operate without human intervention under certain conditions) and is deploying driver assistance systems (ADAS) with automakers including German Marks Mercedes-Benz, BMW and Audi. According to the company, its ADAS systems have already been installed in 400,000 vehicles sold to customers.

Last week Wells Fargo raised its target price on Uber shares from $119 to $127 and maintained a buy recommendation on them with an Overweight rating. Its assessment implies the growth of the company's securities by almost 40%.

According to FactSet data cited by MarketScreener, the average analyst recommendation on Uber's stock remains at "above market" and the average target price is $108.2. That would suggest the company's stock is up about 17%.

Uber investors fear competition from robot cab services: to counter them, Uber has to make significant expenditures, Barron's wrote. The threat from autonomous cars was one of the reasons for the cool attitude to the latest reports: the service exceeded Wall Street expectations on revenue and profits, but its shares fell. Some analysts, however, were positive about Uber's strategy in the robotaxi market over the summer.

The partnership between Uber and Momenta was first unveiled in May 2025, when Uber announced that cars powered by Momenta's technology would appear on its service in Europe in 2026.

Founded in 2016, Momenta is considered one of China's first companies in autonomous transportation. The Beijing-based startup has been testing unmanned vehicles since 2018 and is prominent in the country's competitive unmanned technology market.

This article was AI-translated and verified by a human editor