Cruise has entered into an agreement with Dubai, a city and emirate in the United Arab Emirates, through 2029 to operate self-driving electric taxis – better known as robotaxis – and commercial ride-hailing services. The agreement makes Dubai the first city outside the United States where Cruise plans to operate commercially.
Dubai will also be the first non-U.S. city to launch the Cruise Origin, a self-driving electric shuttle developed by Cruise and General Motors. The company says that the shuttle will be built at Factory ZERO, Detroit-Hamtramck Assembly Center, an all-electric vehicle assembly plant operated by General Motors.
The facility is the first automotive plant in the U.S. to use 5G technology. The plant uses Verizon’s 5G Ultra Wideband service.
News of the agreement was announced Monday, April 12, on Twitter by the Crown Prince of Dubai, Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum.
The sheikh attended the signing of the partnership between Cruise and Dubai’s Roads and Transport Authority (RTA). In his tweet, Sheikh Mohammed added that he discussed the future of smart mobility and its prominent developments with Jeff Bleich, chief legal officer at Cruise.
In addition, Sheikh Mohammed said the first-of-its-kind partnership is an important step towards realizing the city’s Self-Driving Transport Strategy. He said their goal is to convert a quarter of the total transportation in Dubai into self-driving trips through different modes of transportation by 2030.
The sheikh added that Dubai’s push towards self-driving technology would greatly benefit its economy and the environment. This push could also reduce transportation costs in Dubai by 900 million dirhams ($245 million) annually and save Dubai 1.5 billion dirhams ($400 million) by mitigating air pollution.
In addition, the push towards self-driving technology could help Dubai achieve 18 billion dirhams ($4.9 billion) in economic revenues annually by 2030....<<<Read The Full Article Here>>>...
