UAE to have over 10,000 autonomous taxis and delivery vans by 2027, official says

More than 10,000 autonomous taxis and delivery vans are expected to operate across the UAE next year, Khaleej Times reported. Faisal Al Bannai, adviser to the UAE President, said on Tuesday that orders are already placed as the country scales up driverless transport.

Does the UAE have driverless cars?

Yes. Autonomous taxis already run at a smaller scale in Abu Dhabi and Dubai, and both emirates have begun commercial operations. Al Bannai said the technology has passed testing and validation. The planned expansion would move autonomous mobility from hundreds of vehicles into the thousands.

Al Bannai is also secretary general of the Advanced Technology Research Council. He spoke at AI Everything Abu Dhabi.

"Not 1,000, not 5,000, 10,000-plus," he said.

He said the UAE would become the largest deployer of autonomous taxis and vans outside China if the planned scale is reached.

"This is not maybe the roadmap. We've already placed the orders for these platforms," he said.

Where are autonomous taxis operating in the UAE?

Abu Dhabi expanded Level 4 autonomous taxi services on Yas Island earlier this year. Dubai launched commercial autonomous taxi services in areas including Umm Suqeim and Jumeirah.

Abu Dhabi had earlier become the first city in the Middle East and North Africa to begin commercial operations of fully driverless Level 4 vehicles, according to Abu Dhabi Mobility.

What is physical AI?

Al Bannai said the expansion is part of a wider push into what he called "physical AI." In this approach, intelligent systems move beyond software and operate vehicles, robots and other equipment in the physical world.

Robotics will grow alongside autonomous transport, he said. Thousands of robots are expected to operate across the UAE next year in areas including inspection, monitoring and hospitality.

He also said companies offering frontier physical intelligence will be announced.

"They will not be in hundreds, they will be in thousands," he said of the robots.

Where is AI Everything Abu Dhabi taking place?

The two-day AI summit and exhibition is taking place at the Adnec Centre on October 6 and 7.