Uber Technologies and Lyft are joining forces with Chinese tech giant Baidu to trial driverless taxis in the UK next year, marking a significant milestone in the global push to commercialize robotaxis.

The collaboration highlights how ride-hailing platforms are accelerating autonomous vehicle deployment through strategic partnerships, with London emerging as an early testing ground for large-scale robotaxi services in Europe.

Lyft also plans to operate Baidu’s autonomous vehicles in Germany and the UK via its platform, subject to regulatory approval. Both Uber and Lyft have stepped away from in-house development of self-driving technology, relying instead on alliances to speed up adoption.

The partnerships reflect growing momentum in the global robotaxi market. Alphabet’s Waymo announced in October it would begin testing in London this month, while Baidu and China’s WeRide have launched autonomous operations in the Middle East and Switzerland.

Robotaxis are touted as safer, greener, and more cost-efficient alternatives to traditional ride-hailing. However, profitability remains uncertain. Public companies such as Pony.ai and WeRide are still loss-making, and analysts caution that the high costs of operating autonomous fleets could weigh on margins for platforms like Uber and Lyft.