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Since its establishment, the company has incurred losses of 9.4 billion CNY. Author | Yu Hao

Imagine calling for a ride on your phone, and a driverless car arrives to safely and smoothly take you to your destination. On the early morning streets, the cleaning crews are no longer hard-working sanitation workers, but fleets of autonomous vehicles quietly managing their routes.

This is not a far-fetched sci-fi concept; it's the goal that a company called WeRide Inc. is striving to achieve in over 30 cities worldwide. This unicorn in the autonomous driving sector has not only deployed Robotaxis in cities like Guangzhou and Abu Dhabi, which can be ordered via mobile, but has also expanded into more aspects of daily life—from driverless minibuses solving “last-mile” commutes to autonomous freight vehicles in collaboration with delivery giants, and even unsparing driverless sanitation vehicles.

Having just listed on NASDAQ in October 2024, the company is now seeking a "dual primary listing." As disclosed by the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on October 19, WeRide Inc. has officially passed the listing hearing and is expected to become the first "Robotaxi stock" on the Hong Kong market.

An examination of WeRide’s financial data reveals a stark picture: while the core Robotaxi business saw a staggering year-over-year revenue increase of over 800% in the latest quarter, the company's cumulative losses since inception have reached 3.25 billion CNY, qualifying it as a true "money-burning beast."

In the field of autonomous driving, technology is merely the entry ticket; substantial capital serves as the fuel for ongoing operations. Therefore, this listing on the Hong Kong market represents a crucial "midway refueling" for WeRide, with the funds raised becoming essential "ammunition" for the company's next phase of research and development, global expansion, and fierce competition.

01# Cumulative Losses Reach 9.4 Billion CNY, Investment from GAC and Uber Secured

Founded in 2017, WeRide Inc. is currently the only technology company worldwide holding autonomous driving licenses in China, UAE, Singapore, France, the US, Saudi Arabia, and Belgium, conducting R&D, testing, and operations in over 30 cities across 11 countries.

The founder and CEO, Han Xu, holds a Ph.D. from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and was a tenured professor at the University of Missouri, heading computer vision and machine learning labs. Before founding WeRide, he served as the chief scientist at Baidu's US research institute and was an early core member of Baidu's driverless car team.

In this capital-intensive field of autonomous driving, WeRide has constructed a unique commercialization engine. At its core is the "WeRide One" universal technology platform—a technical base designed for achieving Level 4 (highly automated with no human intervention required under certain designs and operational conditions) autonomous driving that can flexibly adapt to various vehicle models and applications.

Based on this platform, WeRide has developed a "1+5" product matrix, which Han Xu likens to "one fish, five dishes", covering main businesses including sales of autonomous vehicles and related operational and technical support services, such as Robotaxi, Robobus (autonomous minibuses), Robovan (autonomous freight vehicles), Robosweeper (autonomous sanitation vehicles), and Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS).

The diversified product layout serves partly to hedge against the lengthy commercialization cycle and uncertainty risks posed by Robotaxi. Han Xu has openly acknowledged that the revenue ramp-up period for Robotaxi is lengthy, while products like Robosweeper and Robobus can see faster order growth, providing valuable cash flow for the company.

Nonetheless, Robotaxi remains WeRide's primary source of revenue. The Q2 2025 financial report indicated total revenue reached 127 million CNY, a year-over-year increase of 60.8%; revenue from the Robotaxi business surged year-over-year by 836.7% to 45.9 million CNY, setting a record in the company’s history, with its share of total revenue soaring from the single digits to 36.1%, marking the highest quarterly proportion since 2021.

Currently, WeRide's Robotaxi business primarily operates in the Middle East. In May of this year, WeRide launched the region's first fully driverless testing and on July 25, received the first autonomous driving license issued by Saudi Arabia, subsequently announcing a pilot operation in Riyadh in collaboration with Uber. Additionally, commercial operations in Dubai are scheduled to launch in 2026.

According to the prospectus, WeRide operates the largest autonomous taxi fleet in the Middle East, with services already available in Abu Dhabi and Riyadh, using the latest GXR models, which can accommodate up to five passengers. Each car is expected to complete dozens of trips during a 12-hour work schedule, with the average trip length in Abu Dhabi typically exceeding six kilometers.

In China, WeRide has achieved Level 4 fully driverless operations in Guangzhou and Beijing. In July 2025, WeRide partnered with Chery and Jinjiang Taxi to introduce autonomous ride-hailing services in Shanghai, marking the formal entry of autonomous taxis into the tenth city globally.

While WeRide boasts strong market prospects and a leading market position, significant commercialization challenges remain unresolved. Over the past three years, WeRide's revenue has consistently declined, with revenues reported at 528 million CNY, 402 million CNY, 361 million CNY, and 200 million CNY for the years 2022-2024 and the first half of 2025 (termed “reporting period”). Losses have been reported at 1.299 billion CNY, 1.949 billion CNY, 2.517 billion CNY, and 791 million CNY. Stretching this over time reveals that the cumulative losses have amounted to 9.423 billion CNY since the company's inception in 2017 to June 2025.

In a continual state of "burning money," WeRide has managed to attract investments through a dual approach of "investment + operations." In 2018, Alliance Ventures, part of the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance, invested in WeRide. In Renault's long-term plan, it will integrate WeRide's automation solutions into the new Renault Master robotic electric minibus platform, transitioning the partnership from simple "procurement-supply" to a "joint R&D" collaboration.

In 2021, the company secured investments from Yutong Group, CMC Capital, Qiming Venture Partners, and Innovation Works; in 2024, GAC Group invested; and in 2025, Uber and Grab both engaged in strategic funding for WeRide, marking the official launch of WeRide's Robotaxi GXR fleet in Uber's newly introduced “Autonomous” designation and providing public operation services in Abu Dhabi.

In February 2023, WeRide confidentially filed for a listing on the US exchange and publicly disclosed its prospectus in July 2024, officially listing in October of the same year. Thus, WeRide became the first general autonomous driving and Robotaxi company to be listed on NASDAQ. Based on interviews with industry insiders, it has been commented that, according to WeRide’s prospectus, achieving large-scale commercialization for autonomous driving technology companies presents significant challenges, and they will likely incur losses in the short term, which may also be the reason for seeking listing financing.

Just a year after its US listing, WeRide has submitted its IPO application to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. The prospectus for the Hong Kong IPO indicates that the funds raised will primarily be used for R&D, accelerating the commercialization production or operation of the Level 4 fleet, marketing, and supplementing operational funds.

02# Executives and Peers Clash; Former Founder Bankrupt Over 15,000 CNY Debt

Alongside WeRide’s movements is another autonomous driving enterprise—Pony AI Inc., founded in 2016 by Peng Jun and Lou Tiancheng, who both previously worked together at Baidu’s US driverless vehicle team, particularly in the R&D of autonomous driving technology. Lou Tiancheng is recognized as Baidu’s youngest T10-level employee.

Pony AI focuses on autonomous ride-hailing (Robotaxi), autonomous truck logistics (Robotruck), and technology licensing and applications, forming deep ties with specific OEMs such as Toyota to jointly design and produce OEM models tailored for autonomous driving. Having made its US public debut in November 2024, Pony AI is now also seeking a listing in Hong Kong, where it passed the exchange’s hearing in October 2025.

In terms of financial performance, the competitive landscape between the two companies has quietly changed. In Q2 2025, WeRide’s total revenue was 127 million CNY, while Pony AI’s reached 154 million CNY. For their Robotaxi businesses, WeRide reported revenue of 45.9 million CNY, while Pony AI’s was around 10.9 million CNY. Regarding fleet size as of June 2025, WeRide operated over 1,200 vehicles compared to approximately 300 for Pony AI. However, in terms of losses, WeRide’s net loss was 406 million CNY, slightly higher than Pony AI’s 380 million CNY.

Interestingly, both companies had a "executives clash" of comments in June this year. During an interview with Tencent Auto, Pony AI co-founder and CTO Lou Tiancheng stated that from the standards of scale and driverlessness, besides "the players on the table" including Waymo, Pony AI, and Baidu, no other companies have achieved the state of these three companies two and a half years ago, suggesting a significant gap. WeRide’s CFO Li Xuan publicly retorted Lou Tiancheng on social media, listing various operational issues at Pony AI and candidly stating, "If you want to learn from WeRide, do it right; at least have dozens of cars operating on the ground first!"

The rivalry stems from the lengthy profit cycle for Level 4 intelligent driving. Although commercialization has begun, the turning point for achieving scalable profitability remains distant. According to Ji Gang, partner and automotive industry consulting head at KPMG China, major cities in China are expected to achieve large-scale applications of autonomous driving by 2030, and autonomous driving might enter the market in the next decade in the form of ride-hailing or logistics vehicles. This implies that companies need to prepare for sustained investments over several years.

However, the reality is harsh.

WeRide's former founder Wang Jin, once the general manager of Baidu's autonomous driving division and hailed as a pioneer in China’s autonomous driving industry, filed for bankruptcy just five years after leaving WeRide to start Zhongzhixing.

According to a civil ruling by the Nanjing Xixia District Court, the applicant reached a mediation agreement with Zhongzhixing through the Labor Arbitration Committee on November 27, 2024, in which Zhongzhixing was to pay the applicant 15,000 CNY by April 20, 2025. However, after the deadline passed and payment was repeatedly demanded, the applicant subsequently requested the court to enforce action. But due to Zhongzhixing’s continued failure to make payment, the applicant eventually initiated bankruptcy proceedings to settle the debt.

Subsequent reviews revealed that Zhongzhixing's debts far exceeded this amount, with creditors beyond just this individual case, indicating a financial crisis hidden within the company. While the civil ruling didn’t disclose the overall debt, information from third-party platforms like Tianyancha suggests that Zhongzhixing, as a historically executed entity, was involved in various enforcement cases, exceeding a total enforcement amount of over 47 million CNY, with most cases still marked as "non-compliant with enforcement."

This incident stands as a minor footnote in the Chinese autonomous driving industry, leaving the future uncertain—will individuals become the next "Wang Jin," or the next "Musk"?

The road to large-scale commercialization is fraught with challenges. Both WeRide and the entire industry must face ongoing capital depletion, fierce market competition, and a plethora of serious challenges. The listing is merely a milestone along a long journey, rather than an endpoint. The path forward for companies like WeRide and Pony AI remains arduous. What are your thoughts on this? Feel free to leave your comments below for discussion.

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Editor: Yang Hongbo