Pony.ai CEO Peng Jun: Expected Cost Reduction of Robotaxi by 2025, Plans to Increase Fleet to at Least 1000 Vehicles
Peng Jun, the CEO and founder of Pony.ai, stated in an interview with the Financial Times that the production costs for China's autonomous taxi company should decrease next year.
Due to reduced manufacturing expenses and the expansion of service areas in first-tier cities like Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen, Pony.ai plans to increase its autonomous driving service (Robotaxi) fleet from the current approximately 250 vehicles to at least 1000 by 2025. Two-thirds of the company's revenue comes from autonomous trucking services. The company plans to collaborate with two local state-owned car manufacturers to produce thousands of robotic taxis annually.
On November 27, Pony.ai announced its listing on NASDAQ, issuing 20 million American Depositary Shares at $13 per share, with the stock code “PONY”. After going public, the company's market value is approximately $4.5 billion (currently about 327.72 billion yuan), with a circulating share count of about 350 million.
On November 29, BAIC Group announced a strategic investment of $70.35 million (currently about 512 million yuan) in Pony.ai, aiming to build a fleet of thousands of autonomous driving services in Beijing over the next three years.
On December 11, Pony.ai and GAC Aion held a Robotaxi strategic cooperation signing ceremony at GAC Group's Panyu headquarters. The two parties will further cooperate to create a scalable production model of Robotaxi with commercial operation competitiveness, jointly promoting the commercialization of fully autonomous Robotaxi production.
