NEW YORK, May 21, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- WeRide Inc. ("WeRide" or the "Company") (Nasdaq: WRD), a global leader in autonomous driving technology, today announced its unaudited financial results for the three months ended March 31, 2025.

Recent Highlights

   -- WeRide accelerates global commercialization of its autonomous driving 
      services, moving toward scalable operations with additional deployments 
      in international markets. 
 
   -- WeRide increased its total fleet size to over 1,200 units in the first 
      quarter of 2025, and accumulated more than 2,000 days in public 
      operations with zero regulatory discipline for autonomous driving system 
      failure 
 
   -- As one of the biggest partnerships of its kind ever announced, WeRide and 
      Uber joined hands to expand commercial robotaxi services to 15 additional 
      cities, following a successful deployment in Abu Dhabi and soon Dubai. 
      Uber has committed to an equity investment of US$100 million, in addition 
      to its existing investment, in WeRide. 
 
   -- WeRide obtained multiple regulatory approvals for commercial deployments 
      in both domestic and international markets. 
 
   -- As part of its ongoing efforts to diversify revenue and expand globally, 
      WeRide recorded RMB72.4 million (US$10.0 million) in total revenue in the 
      first quarter of 2025, representing a 1.8% increase from the same period 
      of 2024 despite global economic uncertainties. 
 
   -- Revenue from robotaxi business recorded RMB16.1 million (US$2.2 million), 
      contributing 22.3% of the Company's total revenue in the first quarter of 
      2025, up 10.4 percentage points from its 11.9% share in the same period 
      in 2024. 
 
   -- Gross profit margin was 35% in the first quarter of 2025, relatively 
      stable compared to the gross profit margin of the fourth quarter of 2024. 

Continuous Robotaxi Expansion through Global Strategic Alliances

Expanded global partnership with Uber to 15 additional cities, and Uber's additional equity investment in WeRide

   -- In May 2025, WeRide and Uber announced a significant expansion of their 
      strategic partnership to include 15 additional cities within the next 
      five years. This expanded partnership advances WeRide and Uber's shared 
      goal of making autonomous mobility a global reality, with both parties 
      leading the way in delivering advanced technology. 
 
   -- In these cities, WeRide's robotaxi services will be available through the 
      Uber app, and Uber will be responsible for fleet operations. 
 
   -- Uber has committed to an equity investment of US$100 million, in addition 
      to its existing investment, in WeRide as part of expanded partnership. 
      This investment is expected to be called by WeRide and completed by the 
      second half of 2025, with closing subject to customary conditions, unless 
      extended at WeRide's option. Uber will invest at a price based on the 
      volume-weighted average price of WeRide's American Depositary Shares 
      $(ADS.AU)$ prior to the closing. 

Robotaxi launch in Dubai with Dubai's Road and Transport Authority (RTA) and Uber

   -- In April 2025, WeRide announced that it would be integrating its 
      self-driving robotaxis into Dubai's public transportation system through 
      RTA and Uber. 
 
   -- This launch represents the second city in the region where WeRide and 
      Uber are collaborating to bring leading autonomous mobility solutions to 
      the general public. 
 
   -- WeRide, Uber and RTA will collaborate on robotaxi pilot in Dubai, with 
      details of the launch and next steps to be announced in the coming 
      months. The partnership will also explore data insights, safety protocols, 
      and regulatory frameworks to support a smooth transition to autonomous 
      mobility in the city. 

Expanded partnership with Tencent Cloud on robotaxi commercialization

   -- In May 2025, WeRide and Tencent Cloud entered into an expanded strategic 
      cooperation agreement to support WeRide's autonomous driving R&D efforts, 
      robotaxi commercialization and its expansion into international markets. 
 
   -- As part of the partnership, the two parties will explore commercial 
      deployment of level-4 autonomous robotaxis. WeRide's robotaxi services 
      will be integrated into platforms such as Tencent Smart Transportation 
      Mini Program on Weixin/WeChat, offering users a new autonomous travel 
      experience that is safer, more convenient, and more comfortable. 

Multiple Regulatory and Commercial Breakthroughs Accelerating Global Autonomous Driving Adoption

Robotaxi

   -- Abu Dhabi driverless testing. In May 2025, WeRide announced the launch of 
      fully driverless robotaxi testing in Abu Dhabi -- the first deployment of 
      its kind in the Middle East. Starting in the second quarter of 2025, a 
      fleet of WeRide's robotaxis will start testing on public roads without 
      safety drivers, marking a major milestone in the advancement of smart 
      mobility in Abu Dhabi. As part of this new phase, WeRide will also extend 
      its robotaxi service coverage to two high-demand islands in Abu Dhabi: Al 
      Maryah Island, the city's financial hub and home to the Abu Dhabi Global 
      Market, and Al Reem Island, a vibrant residential and lifestyle district. 
      Commercial driverless rides and additional service areas are expected to 
      be introduced to the public progressively from the summer of 2025, 
      subject to regulatory approvals. 
 
   -- Expanding robotaxi commercial operation to additional core areas in 
      Guangzhou, China. In May 2025, WeRide introduced eight autonomous 
      robotaxi pilot operation routes in central Guangzhou, establishing 
      China's first 24-hour autonomous ride-hailing network covering the core 
      areas of a Tier 1 city. This marks a significant step toward the 
      large-scale commercialization of WeRide's robotaxi services. The new 
      24-hour robotaxi network covers key landmarks in Guangzhou including the 
      Canton Tower, the Canton Fair Complex, Garden Hotel, and Zhujiang New 
      Town, as well as national transportation hubs like Guangzhou Baiyun 
      International Airport and Guangzhou South Railway Station. 

Robobus

   -- France level-4 trial operation permit. In March 2025, our Robobus were 
      granted trial operation permit in France, making WeRide the first and, to 
      date, only autonomous driving company whose products have received 
      operation approvals across five countries: China, the UAE, Singapore, 
      France, and the U.S. 
 
   -- First fare-charging level-4 robobus service in the heart of Guangzhou. In 
      May 2025, WeRide launched a paid commercial service with its Level-4 
      robobus in central Guangzhou. This marks the city's first fare-charging 
      autonomous bus line in its downtown core -- a significant step toward 
      mass commercialization of WeRide's Level-4 autonomous vehicles. The 
      55-minute driverless robobus route covers 13.6km, connecting key 
      landmarks of Guangzhou. 

Robovan

   -- Robovan W5 testing permit in China. In April 2025, WeRide received 
      Guangzhou Nansha District's first batch of driverless road-testing 
      licenses, authorizing its robovan W5 for driverless testing on public 
      roads. This marks the first time such licenses are granted in Guangzhou 
      since Nansha District introduced its trial safety guidelines for 
      autonomous vehicle road testing in the first quarter of 2025. 

Robosweeper

   -- In the first quarter of 2025, WeRide continued to strengthen and deploy 
      its city sanitation solutions across multiple Chinese cities including 
      Guangzhou, Dongguan, Zhengzhou, Erdos, among others. Particularly in 
      Guangzhou and Dongguan, the Company extended its robosweeper operations 
      in this quarter to additional areas beyond the original service areas in 
      the last year, reflecting steady growth and broader adoption of its 
      robosweepers by stakeholders in the urban sanitation sector. WeRide 
      expects to secure agreements to deploy its robosweepers in additional 
      cities across Hebei, Sichuan, and Jiangsu provinces in the second quarter 
      of 2025. 
 
   -- In May 2025, WeRide's robosweeper S1 launched its trial service in Jurong 
      Lake Gardens, Singapore, marking the first time of the product's 
      operation in Singapore's heartland areas following the successful 
      launches at Marina Coastal Drive and Esplanade in downtown. 

Continuous Advancement of the Universal Autonomous Vehicle (AV) Platform WeRide One

   -- WeRide One. The Company's world-leading AV platform WeRide One 
      demonstrates the strongest ability of adaptation across various operation 
      design domain and multi-AV-level use cases. Other than expanding area of 
      driverless testing and operation supported by new permits of robotaxi and 
      robobus, the Company's logistics and ADAS products leveraging the same 
      universal platform also achieved major breakthroughs. 
 
   -- New generation of ADAS powered by QNX$(R)$ OS for Safety. In April 2025, 
      QNX, a division of BlackBerry Limited, and WeRide announced the two 
      companies are working together to help accelerate the advancement and 
      deployment of Software Defined Vehicles (SDVs) for automotive OEMs and 
      suppliers around the world. 

Management Commentary

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May 21, 2025 05:10 ET (09:10 GMT)