Chinese robo-taxi company Pony.ai is officially entering the South Korean market. The company plans to introduce fully autonomous robo-taxis currently in operation in China to Seoul, aiming for commercial service by 2028. As global autonomous driving companies continue to enter the market, competition for dominance in South Korea's robo-taxi sector is expected to intensify, despite challenges related to domestic certification and existing taxi industry interests.
Pony.ai held a press conference on August 28 at the Conrad Seoul in Yeouido, where it announced plans for its seventh-generation robo-taxi commercial service. The company aims to establish a joint venture with its local subsidiary, FutureLink, to secure domestic certification and introduce a total of 200 unmanned robo-taxis in Seoul by 2028.
Next month, Pony.ai will bring 10 robo-taxis based on Beijing Automotive Group's Arcfox Alpha T5 to South Korea. The remaining 190 vehicles will be gradually introduced after completing domestic certification procedures by June next year. FutureLink will handle localization efforts, including data labeling and the development of high-precision maps tailored to the South Korean market.
Pony.ai is recognized for its level 4 autonomous driving technology, which allows vehicles to operate without driver intervention. The company currently operates unmanned robo-taxis in major Chinese cities such as Beijing, Shenzhen, Shanghai, and Guangzhou. It plans to introduce a similar level of fully unmanned robo-taxis in South Korea.
James Peng, co-founder and CEO of Pony.ai, stated, "In major markets like Shenzhen and Guangzhou, each vehicle operates more than 25 times a day, with users accessing the service around the clock."
The seventh-generation robo-taxis will not be retrofitted with autonomous driving equipment but will be designed from the production line with autonomy in mind. The vehicles will feature a redundant structure for critical systems such as braking, steering, and power, ensuring they can safely stop even if a specific component fails. Pony.ai is pushing to deploy over 4,000 robo-taxis in international markets based on its strong technological capabilities.
However, the biggest challenge for Pony.ai in commercializing its robo-taxis in South Korea is obtaining domestic certification. To operate a paid service with actual passengers, the company must navigate regulations related to autonomous vehicles and coordinate with passenger transport business regulations. Currently, unmanned taxis operating in Gangnam are doing so under temporary permits, with formal approval processes still pending.
James Peng emphasized, "Certification for autonomous vehicles differs from that for conventional vehicles. It requires a complete redesign and modification of the vehicle rather than just adding sensors to existing models. Pony's autonomous vehicles will be manufactured from the production line to be suitable for autonomous driving."
FutureLink is conducting technical validation for the domestic commercialization of Pony.ai's robo-taxis. Using modified Hyundai Kona Electric vehicles, the company has driven approximately 87,000 kilometers in the Gangnam area, collecting data to respond to various driving situations encountered in South Korean urban environments, such as construction zones with frequently changing lanes. This data will support the formal domestic certification process.
How to navigate the interests of the existing taxi industry is also seen as a variable in the commercialization process. Concerns have been raised that the introduction of robo-taxis could lead to conflicts similar to those experienced during Uber's entry into the South Korean market, which involved issues of survival for traditional taxi operators.
In response, Cha Du-won, CEO of FutureLink, stated, "We do not intend to create an adversarial relationship with the existing taxi industry. We are exploring business structures that allow for collaboration and considering providing autonomous driving services in areas where traditional taxi services are insufficient."
Some have expressed concerns that the entry of Chinese autonomous driving companies could weaken domestic industrial competitiveness. If companies with extensive operational experience in China enter the South Korean market, the gap with domestic firms, which are still in the testing phase, could widen.
In this context, Nam Kyung-pil, chairman of FutureLink, likened the situation to the early smartphone market, stating, "It is not about protecting the industry but rather securing competitiveness through competition. Samsung smartphones gained competitiveness by competing with Apple and now lead the foldable phone market."
With Pony.ai's entry, the competition among global companies in South Korea's autonomous driving market is expected to intensify. The government plans to expand the number of autonomous driving test vehicles to a maximum of 3,000 in the long term, which is likely to attract more companies seeking to enter the market.
The Seoul city government is preparing for the expansion of the robo-taxi market by recruiting operators for autonomous driving platforms as of August 24. In Gwangju, designated as an autonomous driving test city, the goal is to deploy 200 test vehicles by the end of the year.
While domestic companies like Hyundai are also aiming to secure a foothold in the robo-taxi market, they face challenges in competing with foreign companies that already possess vast driving data and commercialization experience. The industry assesses that South Korea's autonomous driving technology lags behind that of the U.S. and China by approximately two and a half years.
Following Pony.ai, Google Waymo established a South Korean subsidiary last month to expand its presence in the domestic autonomous driving market. Meanwhile, Tesla has introduced a robo-taxi-specific vehicle, the Cybertruck, in the U.S. as part of its global expansion efforts.
As South Korea's autonomous driving market transitions from testing to commercialization, concerns have emerged that foreign companies could seize control and lead to dependency on key technologies.
Kim Pil-soo, a professor at Daelim University’s Department of Future Automotive Engineering, remarked, "The entry of foreign autonomous driving companies, including those from China and Waymo in the U.S., was anticipated. Given that South Korea's technology and data competitiveness are lagging and regulatory barriers are high, there is a risk of foreign companies encroaching on the market and leading to dependency on core technologies."
* This article has been translated by AI.
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