June the 28th, 2024 – The futuristic Rimac robotaxi will allegedly be “cheaper than Uber and Bolt”, it was heard. A factory is now being constructed in Lučko near Zagreb.
As Poslovni Dnevnik/Josipa Ban writes, Verne (formerly Project 3 Mobility) finally presented their ecosystem of urban autonomous mobility to the public. It should all come to life in Zagreb in 2026 in the form of the Rimac robotaxi. Rather ironically, the thing that held it all up was the robotaxi’s “disobedience”.
After the so-called Rimac robotaxi was supposed to be brought before a large crowd, including Prime Minister Andrej Plenković, the Minister of Transport, investors and representatives from numerous cities interested in using the urban mobility concept developed by Verne… the robotaxi’s obedience waned.
“we’re building the future”
There was a problem with the brakes, Mate Rimac, the co-founder of Verne and chief executive officer of the Rimac Group, later explained in a statement. “He who works also makes mistakes,” he said. However, this version of the Rimac robotaxi is only the working version that will, of course, be refined in the coming period. In any case, the concept, which consists of three elements – an autonomous electric vehicle, a software platform and a specialised infrastructure – which is worth a total of 535 million euros, should soon come to life.
Those of us in Zagreb should be able to ride in the Rimac robotaxi as early as 2026. It will boast two seats, the interior of which will be covered by screens, and no steering wheel or brakes. It will be completely powered by artificial intelligence. There is no place for fear, its creators assure. “This car has the largest possible impact zone, which allows it to absorb the energy of any impact,” Rimac pointed out, adding that they paid the greatest possible attention to safety.
In addition to safety, comfort and experience were important to them. Although the taxi is robotic, users will feel as if it is in their own hands. This will enable a number of built-in features.
“Everything we’re developing is quite bold. We’re building the future, and that’s what Jules Verne did. That’s why we decided to use his name,” said Mate Rimac.
the rimac robotaxi will be “cheaper than bolt and uber”
How much will it cost to use? Less than driving with Uber or Bolt, according to Mate Rimac. This, as they say, “revolutionary” project that is being developed in Croatia, should be the initiator of a new and most innovative industry that is currently developing in the world. Its importance was recognised by the government, seeing it included as a project within the National Recovery and Resilience Plan back in 2021.
A total of 179.5 million euros of public money will be thrown at the robotaxi project, with an additional 100 million having been collected from several investors. So far, 89 million euros of public money have been paid out. When the next payments will be made will depend on the dynamics of the project’s development, according to government representatives.
In addition to the Rimac robotaxi, the project also consists of other elements – an infrastructure and software platform. The software platform is actually a user application for ordering a ride and a platform for managing the entire service. The infrastructure, on the other hand, presupposes the construction of a place where the vehicles will be located, inspected, maintained and cleaned.
This infrastructure, which they’ve called the “Mothership” will be in Buzin, revealed Marko Pejković, the chief executive officer of Verne. In addition, he announced that the construction of the production plant is now starting. It will be in Lučko near Zagreb and should be completed in October next year.
testing is to come
“It will be the first factory where autonomous electric vehicles will be produced and delivered to the world,” Pejković pointed out. In the beginning, there should be about a hundred such vehicles on Zagreb’s roads. For the sake of profitability, contracting partnerships with other cities will be key. Intensive work is being done on this.
Pejković added that there is an agreement with eight cities, and they are still negotiating with 30 of them. Among those who will implement the Rimac robotaxi service will be cities from across the rest of the Europe and the Middle East. The testing of the new robotaxis will begin soon, first on an indoor range, and only then on the roads.
