inDrive, a ride-hailing service recognized for its fare negotiation model between users and drivers, has partnered with Chinese autonomous vehicle company Pony.ai and tech giant Nvidia. Their collaboration aims to initiate robotaxi trials in Kazakhstan by 2027.
On Friday, the companies announced the signing of a memorandum of understanding, signaling their intent to integrate Pony.ai’s robotaxis into inDrive’s service. This move highlights the increasing global attention on autonomous driving advancements outside of traditional centers like the U.S. and China.
According to inDrive CTO Yuri Misnik, pilot testing is scheduled to commence in Astana, Kazakhstan’s capital, during the first half of 2027. These initial trials will include a safety operator, with the ultimate ambition being completely driverless operations.
The current proposal outlines Pony.ai supplying its advanced Gen-7 robotaxis, which inDrive will integrate into its ride-hailing application for operation in Kazakhstan. Meanwhile, Nvidia will contribute its cutting-edge AI technology, featuring its Hyperion platform and the Halos safety system.
This initiative by inDrive aligns with a broader trend of ride-hailing firms venturing into robotaxi services. For instance, Uber recently disclosed intentions to trial Pony.ai’s robotaxis in London, complementing its existing supervised autonomous rides with the British startup Wayve, an key investment partner. Uber is also actively collaborating with various robotaxi providers across other regions, such as the Middle East.
After establishing its reputation on providing economical ride services, inDrive now aims to apply a similar cost-effective strategy to autonomous ride-hailing, entering a market where competitors like Uber are already establishing a presence.
Misnik commented, saying, “Our strategy is inherently capital-efficient. We collaborate with diverse partners across various markets, merging their specialized knowledge with our own to enhance the customer experience.”
Nvidia asserts that its Hyperion platform has the potential to reduce robotaxi development expenses. It provides companies with a pre-built framework of sensors and computing power, removing the need for them to develop and integrate these components independently. Additionally, Nvidia supplies its Alpamayo model and utilities for creating synthetic data and evaluating autonomous driving systems under various conditions.
Ali Kani, Nvidia’s vice president of automotive, informed TechCrunch that “Such cost efficiencies are especially vital in developing markets, where ride-hailing fares are already quite competitive, requiring autonomous services to also be price-conscious.”
Notably, this announcement coincides with Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang’s inaugural visit to Kazakhstan, which took place on Friday.
This proposed venture in Kazakhstan further supports Pony.ai’s continued international expansion efforts beyond China. By the close of 2026, the company targets deploying over 3,500 robotaxis across more than 20 global cities, significantly increasing its fleet from 1,975 vehicles reported at the end of June.
Just last month, Kazakhstan revealed its intention to introduce autonomous taxi services by 2027, with preliminary pilots scheduled for Astana and two other cities. The nation has also established regulations permitting autonomous vehicle testing on specific public roadways.
Astana’s severe winter climate presents a valuable opportunity for robotaxi testing. The city, home to approximately 1.7 million residents, experiences prolonged periods of snow and ice, creating demanding conditions for autonomous driving technologies.
inDrive founder and CEO Arsen Tomsky stated, “Initiating services here offers a crucial chance to assess autonomous driving technology under harsh winter environments. A successful deployment in Astana could yield significant learnings for extending autonomous mobility to other areas encountering comparable difficulties.”
Kazakhstan isn’t the sole region where inDrive is considering robotaxis. Last December, the company entered a distinct agreement with Saudi Arabia’s AI Driver to investigate the deployment of autonomous vehicles, utilizing technology from Chinese self-driving company WeRide, commencing in Riyadh. While a pilot was aimed for the first half of 2026, it’s currently uncertain if testing has commenced.
Misnik added, “We are also evaluating several other markets for upcoming deployments. In our estimation, a primary prerequisite for a successful launch is a supportive and cooperative regulatory framework to enable secure and continuous road testing.”
Operating in over 1,200 cities across 47 nations, the company has diversified its services beyond ride-hailing to include delivery, intercity travel, and financial offerings.