May the 8th, 2026 – Early last month, news about Zagreb becoming the first city in Europe to operate a commercial robotaxi service broke. Here’s all you need to know.
Zagreb has officially become the first city in Europe to operate a commercial robotaxi service. The Croatian company Verne (part of the constantly expanding Rimac ecosystem) has been gradually rolling out the service since early April 2026, and it is now actively taking paid rides for selected users.
The company is operating a fleet of around ten (Arcfox Alpha T5 SUVs equipped with Pony.ai’s 7th-generation self-driving technology). Rides are currently available to early waiting-list users via the Verne app, with plans to integrate into the Uber app soon.
things to note as europe’s first robotaxis hit zagreb’s streets
It isn’t quite as straightforward as ordering a taxi on Bolt just yet. Rides are available mainly in the wider city centre and to/from Zagreb Airport. During this initial phase, trained safety operators will remain behind the wheel for safety as things get going.
It’s worth noting that Verne is aiming to move to fully driverless operations (with no safety operator at all) by the end of 2026. More importantly for this remarkable Croatian company yet, they’re already in talks to expand to 11 other cities in the EU, UK, and even to the Middle East.
“For the first time in Europe, there’s now a real commercial robotaxi service, people can use it and experience autonomous driving,” stated Marko Pejković, CEO of Verne.
zagreb is proud to have been chosen
Being a Croatian company, Verne is naturally more than proud that Zagreb was chosen as the first city in all of Europe for these sci-fi-esque vehicles to begin operating: “If it were that easy to operate them anywhere, these cars would already exist in London or some other major European city,” they stated from Verne.
This is a true milestone for European mobility, and is something few of us could have ever imagined a decade or so ago, let alone it taking place in Croatia.
