Recently, Pony.ai held a signing ceremony with South Korean tech company GemVaxLink to announce the establishment of a joint venture, marking the launch of its plan to take its technology overseas in the East Asian market. It is reported that this new joint venture is scheduled to be established in Seoul within this year. Through the joint venture, Pony.ai will work with GemVaxLink to carry out research and development of autonomous driving technologies and applications. According to the plan, the two sides will first put a fleet of self-driving cars in Seoul, on the basis of which they will further explore more application scenarios for self-driving products in Korea.
Since its establishment in 2016, Pony.ai has focused on the development of L4-level autonomous driving technology, and its Robotaxi has been piloted for highway operation in Guangzhou, and in June 2019, it obtained the qualification for Robotaxi service in California. Pony.ai signed a strategic cooperation agreement with Guangzhou Automobile Group in the areas of autonomous driving technology, capital sector, mobile mobility and driverless demonstration operation.
On August 4, 2023, Toyota China, Pony.ai and GAC Toyota had announced the formation of a joint venture aimed at promoting the mass production and deployment of self-driving cabs or Robotaxi. The joint venture plans to launch Toyota-branded electric vehicles manufactured by GAC-Toyota as prototypes for the Robotaxi. These vehicles will be equipped with Toyota's T-Pilot intelligent driver assistance system, including pre-collision safety systems. The joint venture will leverage the strengths of Toyota's production system and the proven service operation system of GAC Toyota dealers to ensure the safe operation of the unmanned Robotaxi. Currently, about 200 Robotaxi based on Lexus RX450h and Toyota Sienna models are providing self-driving mobility services in Beijing, Guangzhou, Shenzhen and Shanghai through Pony.ai's operation platform.
South Korea's self-driving car market is growing rapidly, and its size is growing rapidly at a CAGR of 21.66% per year, and is expected to reach approximately $315.987 billion by 2030. The South Korean government aims to achieve a 30% penetration rate of self-driving cars by 2030. At the same time, South Korea's new energy vehicle market is also expanding rapidly, South Korean media statistics, South Korea's new energy vehicle market share in 2023 for the first time exceeded 30%, new energy vehicle sales also hit a record high.
This initiative to establish a joint venture in Korea lays a solid foundation for Pony.ai's expansion in the East Asian market. With the accelerated development of China's automotive industry, electrification and intelligence have become the core highlights of the development of the new energy automotive industry, which continues to help the layout of China's intelligent automotive industry abroad.