The Abu Dhabi Investment Office (ADIO) announced today that leading global autonomous driving company, Pony.ai, is set to become the latest company to join Abu Dhabi’s Smart and Autonomous Vehicles Industry (SAVI) cluster, located in Masdar City. The two entities signed a collaboration agreement on the sidelines of GITEX Global.
Founded in 2016 in Silicon Valley, Pony.ai has played an important role in expanding the reach of autonomous mobility across the globe. The company has established a name for itself in the commercialisation and development of safe autonomous driving solutions. Building on the latest value proposition at SAVI, Pony.ai will be able to test its latest technologies at the Yas Island testing zone, which offers an established road mobility test bed with a growing number of incorporated technology startups.
Badr Al-Olama, Director General of Abu Dhabi Investment Office (ADIO), said: “We look forward to welcoming Pony.ai to Abu Dhabi’s SAVI cluster, as we continue to bring key global autonomous vehicles players from around the world to set up operations in Abu Dhabi. Ranked as one of the world’s leading innovative and disruptive players, Pony.ai can play an important role in driving Abu Dhabi’s ambitions towards promoting the adoption and accessibility of autonomous, sustainable mobility applications in the UAE.”
As of October 2023, Pony.ai has accumulated more than 25 million kilometres (more than 15 million miles) of autonomous driving mileage across diverse geographies. CNBC ranked Pony.ai #10 on its 2022 CNBC Disruptor List of the most disruptive and innovative companies. In 2023, XPRIZE and Bessemer Venture Partners ranked Pony.ai #12 globally on its inaugural list of the world’s top 100 private deep tech companies.
Leo Wang, founding member and CFO of Pony.ai, said: “We are delighted to collaborate with the Abu Dhabi Investment Office to explore opportunities for bringing Pony.ai’s world-class autonomous driving technology to the Emirate, to promote the advancement of the local mobility sector and the future of transportation. As a leading global autonomous driving company, we are pleased with the welcoming ecosystem for autonomous driving technology at Abu Dhabi’s recently launched global Smart and Autonomous Vehicle Industry cluster, located in Masdar City, and we look forward to a long-term collaboration with ADIO.”
Abu Dhabi is developing a comprehensive multi-modal cluster designed to accelerate the deployment of smart and autonomous vehicles across air, land and sea. SAVI brings together all relevant stakeholders to advance value chain development, attract companies from all around the world, enable access to funding and investments, facilitate and fund innovation, streamline regulatory services, and fast track the adoption of future mobility solutions.