Lucid and Bolt Plan to Launch 25,000 Autonomous Robotaxis in Europe

US electric vehicle manufacturer Lucid Group and European mobility platform Bolt are partnering to develop and scale self-driving passenger services in Europe. The companies plan to tap into Europe's growing robotaxi market.

Following the partnership announcement, Lucid's shares rose 5.5% in pre-market trading.

The companies' collaboration reflects a broader trend in which the robotaxi industry is moving from pilot programs to commercial deployment. Competition to develop autonomous transport in Europe is intensifying. For instance, Uber, Verne and Pony.ai launched a robotaxi service in Zagreb in August, while Alphabet-owned Waymo is testing autonomous vehicles in Munich and plans to launch its service in Germany by the end of 2027.

Bolt plans to deploy at least 25,000 fully autonomous Lucid vehicles in major European cities. This is part of the company's broader plan to have 100,000 autonomous vehicles on the Bolt platform by 2035.

The vehicles will be built on Lucid's upcoming Midsize platform and are expected to use Nvidia's DRIVE Hyperion autonomous driving architecture.

Lucid and Bolt will also jointly develop a vehicle platform ready for an autonomous driving system that will support SAE Level 4 automation. This means the vehicle will not require driver intervention within defined conditions and operational zones.

Bolt's autonomous driving division will define the requirements for the vehicle, software, safety and passenger experience. The company will also build fleet infrastructure and operating systems and work on partnerships with European cities.

Bolt itself plans to own and operate the autonomous fleet. The companies will also collaborate with other autonomous driving technology partners, European regulators and policymakers to establish the technological and regulatory conditions needed to roll out the new services.

For Lucid, the deal with Bolt is another step in its ongoing expansion into autonomous vehicles. The company is already working with Uber and Nuro, with which it plans to manufacture vehicles and integrate autonomous driving technology for its future robotaxi service.