WeRide (HKG:0800), a Chinese autonomous driving technology firm, saw its shares plummet 14.46% in pre-market trading on its Hong Kong Stock Exchange debut on Thursday. This sharp decline comes as a surprise, given the strong investor interest during its initial public offering (IPO).

The company's shares were set to open at HK$24.98, significantly lower than its IPO price of HK$27.10. This weak start is in stark contrast to the enthusiasm shown during the IPO process, where WeRide raised approximately HK$2.26 billion (US$308 million) in net proceeds. The Hong Kong public offer portion was particularly popular, being 73.44 times oversubscribed and triggering a claw-back mechanism that increased the allocation to 20% of the total offering.

The dramatic drop in WeRide's stock price on its first trading day may reflect broader market concerns about the autonomous driving sector or specific investor apprehensions about the company's valuation and future prospects. This performance also aligns with a trend seen in other recent tech IPOs in Hong Kong, suggesting a possible cooling of investor sentiment towards high-growth, pre-profit technology companies. As trading continues, market participants will be closely watching WeRide's performance to gauge investor confidence in both the company and the broader autonomous vehicle industry.