WeRide Inc. is an international L4 autonomous driving technology company and is the only technology company in the world to hold driverless driving permits in China, the US, the UAE and Singapore. The company was founded by Tony Han (who is the former chief scientist of Baidu ‘s Autonomous Driving Unit) in 2017 in Silicon Valley, California, USA, and has now also established its research, development and operation centers in San Jose, Abu Dhabi, Singapore, Guangzhou, Beijing, Shanghai and Shenzhen. The company has grown to over 1200 employees worldwide in the last 7 years and has formed strategic partnerships with OEMs and Tier 1 suppliers as well as Renault, Nissan, Mitsubishi, Yutong Group, GAC Group, Bosch etc.
In November 2020, WeRide announced that a total of 147,128 trips were completed for more than 60,000 passengers during the first year of Robotaxi service. On the one-year anniversary of Robotaxi’s operation, WeRide teamed up with the Institute of Transportation Engineering, Tsinghua University to conduct a survey of Robotaxi riders and published China’s first Robotaxi rider survey report. In January 2021, WeRide unveiled the world’s first purpose-built L4 Mini Robobus and announced the launch of its regular testing and booking services for the public. In April 2021, WeRide received a driverless test permit from the DMV, becoming the first autonomous driving company to receive a driverless test permit in both the U.S. and China. In December 2021, WeRide completed an autonomous taxi service on Yas Island in the United Arab Emirates through a partnership with Bayanat. WeRide has developed complete software and hardware solutions for autonomous driving as well as operational and monitoring systems for the TAXI application.
In May 2022, WeRide received a strategic investment from Bosch and the two parties jointly developed the ADAS solution. This collaboration has accelerated the development process of Bosch China’s advanced control solution and will move SAE Level 2-3 AD towards mass production. In September 2022, WeRide collaborated with the Saudi Company for Artificial Intelligence (SCAI) to launch the first dynamic driverless robobus route (WeRide Robobus) at the 2022 Global AI Summit held in Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia. This is the first full test drive of a driverless robobus in a Middle Eastern country. In January 2023, WeRide launched its next generation autonomous driving sensor suite, WeRide Sensor Suite 5.1, at the International Consumer Electronics Show (CES). In October 2024, WeRide and Uber announced a strategic partnership to bring WeRide autonomous vehicles to the Uber platform, starting in the United Arab Emirates. The service will launch for the first time in Abu Dhabi with select WeRide vehicles available through the Uber app. WeRide already operates the largest fleet of robotaxis in the UAE and holds the only national license for self-driving vehicles, allowing it to operate nationwide.
WeRide Inc. also filed for a Nasdaq IPO in October 2024, raising $439.9 million on Nasdaq.
IPO WeRide Inc.
WeRide Inc, a global leader and early mover in the autonomous driving industry, raised US$440.5 million through an IPO and announced the pricing of its initial public offering of 7,742,400 American Depositary Shares («ADSs») on October 25, 2024. The IPO share price was priced to the public at US$15.50 per share. On October 25, 2024, the shares began selling under the ticker symbol (WRD:NASDAQ). The Company’s valuation now exceeds $4 billion, bolstered by an additional $320.5 million raised through a private placement. Following the listing, WeRide became the world’s first publicly traded universal autonomous driving technology company and the first publicly traded Robotaxi company . WeRide founder and CEO Tony Han said, «Seven years of perseverance have led to WeRide’s new journey today. We are deeply grateful to our investors, clients, employees and all our partners for their trust and support. Together we have reached this important milestone.» «Going public is a new beginning for us, and WeRide will continue to foster technological innovation and provide safe, convenient and comfortable autonomous driving products and services to other countries and regions.»