inDrive Eyes 2027 Robotaxis in Kazakhstan

According to TechCrunch, ride-hailing company inDrive has signed a memorandum of understanding with Chinese autonomous driving firm Pony.ai and chipmaker Nvidia. The collaboration aims to test Pony.ai's Gen-7 robotaxis in Astana, the capital of Kazakhstan, during the first half of 2027. Initially, these vehicles will include a safety operator behind the wheel, with fully driverless rides set as the long-term objective. Under the arrangement, inDrive will integrate the robotaxis into its ride-hailing application, while Nvidia will supply underlying artificial intelligence technology, including its Hyperion platform and Halos safety system.

The initiative reflects broader industry interest in expanding self-driving services into emerging markets, where autonomous options must compete on cost against already affordable traditional ride-hailing. Nvidia's ready-made foundation of sensors and computing technology seeks to lower the financial barrier of developing robotaxis. Furthermore, testing in Astana introduces challenging winter conditions characterized by months of snow and ice, providing a unique evaluation environment for autonomous driving systems.

Nvidia automotive vice president Ali Kani stated that savings from ready-made technology foundations are particularly relevant in emerging markets where ride-hailing is affordable and autonomous services must compete on cost.

The planned deployment in Kazakhstan represents a strategic push by inDrive to explore affordable autonomous mobility in international regions while assessing how self-driving systems handle severe winter weather.