Abu Dhabi: Abu Dhabi’s Department of Municipalities and Transports has rolled out the region’s first fully autonomous and environmentally friendly taxi service.
In a new video released by the authorities on Twitter, the taxis can be seen plying on Abu Dhabi’s Yas Island and testing the pilot service.
Video of driverless taxis
“The environmentally-friendly electric vehicles equipped with sensors combined with a smart geographical ecosystem and supported by artificial intelligence will help develop TXAI’s driverless capabilities,” said Hasan Al Hosani, CEO of Bayanat, in the video.
The video is part of Mubadala-powered Group 42’s trials of the Middle East’s first driverless ride-sharing service – TXAI – which began on November 23, 2021 and are available for members of the public to try out on Yas Island until December 30.
Phase one will begin with five TXAI branded vehicles operating on Yas Island, transporting passengers between nine stops that include hotels, restaurants, shopping malls and offices. The full circuit is a 20km trip. All cars have a safety officer on board.
Phase two will include more TXAI vehicles in multiple locations across Abu Dhabi.