Pony AI Inc. (NASDAQ:PONY) shares plunged 5.08% in pre-market trading on Wednesday, extending the previous day's losses as investors continue to take profits following recent gains. This decline comes despite positive news surrounding the company's progress in autonomous driving technology and potential partnerships.

The sell-off began on Tuesday when PONY's stock dropped 6.49% to close at $9.65 per share. Investors appear to be cashing in on recent price increases, even as the company reported significant improvements in its cost structure. Pony AI's chief technology officer, Lou Tiancheng, stated that the company is nearing profitability after reducing the costs of materials by 70%, marking a substantial improvement in the company's financial outlook.

Despite the current downward trend, Pony AI's long-term prospects remain intriguing. The company recently announced plans to develop autonomous driving technology and offer robotaxi services. CEO James Peng revealed that Pony AI is in talks with Tencent Cloud to potentially offer robotaxi services through WeChat and other applications, leveraging Tencent's massive user base and cloud infrastructure. However, it seems that investors are currently focused on short-term gains, leading to the ongoing sell-off in pre-market trading.