WeRide, a Chinese self-driving technology company, and Uber Technologies announced a collaboration on Wednesday to introduce its cars to the ridesharing platform, initially in the United Arab Emirates.
TakeAway Points:
- Uber Technologies and WeRide announced a partnership on Wednesday to bring the Chinese self-driving technology firm’s vehicles to the rideshare platform, starting in the United Arab Emirates.
- WeRide’s first collaboration with a global ride-hailing platform will help the company expand its reach beyond China, while Uber takes another towards incorporating robotaxis into its platform.
- PayPal Holdings also announced that it will allow American retailers to purchase, retain, and trade cryptocurrencies using their corporate accounts.
Uber and WeRide’s partnership
Initially launching in the United Arab Emirates, Uber Technologies and WeRide announced a collaboration to integrate the vehicles of the Chinese self-driving technology company onto the ridesharing platform.
WeRide’s first collaboration with a global ride-hailing platform will help the company expand its reach beyond China, while Uber takes another towards incorporating robotaxis into its platform.
Uber expanded its partnership with Alphabet’s Waymo to bring robotaxis to Austin and Atlanta in the United States earlier this month.
In August, Uber tied up with General Motors’ robotaxi unit Cruise, which will offer its autonomous vehicles on the platform starting next year.
The ride-hailing firm’s partnership with WeRide is set to launch in Abu Dhabi later this year.
WeRide was granted UAE’s first and only national license for self-driving vehicles, which allows the Chinese firm to test and operate robotaxis on public roads throughout the country.
WeRide was expected to list its shares in the United States, valuing the firm up to $5 billion, but its initial public offering has been delayed and the firm said it was working to complete documentation to go ahead with the listing.
The Biden administration on Monday proposed prohibitions that would prevent testing of self-driving cars on U.S. roads by Chinese automakers and which would extend to vehicle software and hardware produced by other U.S. foreign adversaries, including Russia.
PayPal says its open to trading for US merchants
PayPal Holdings announced on Wednesday it is enabling U.S. merchants to buy, hold and sell cryptocurrency from their business accounts.
Cryptocurrency has moved from being a nascent asset class towards greater market acceptance after bitcoin exchange traded funds were approved for listing by the U.S. SEC earlier in the year.
“Business owners have increasingly expressed a desire for the same cryptocurrency capabilities available to consumers,” said Jose Fernandez da Ponte, Senior Vice President of Blockchain, Cryptocurrency, and Digital Currencies at PayPal.
PayPal joined the cryptocurrency market in 2020, allowing customers to buy, sell and hold bitcoin and other virtual coins using the digital payments company’s online wallets.
The company became the first major financial technology firm to embrace digital currencies for payments and transfers when it launched its dollar-backed stablecoin in August 2023.
Stablecoins are crypto tokens whose monetary value is pegged to a stable asset to protect potential investors from wild swings in prices.
San Jose, California-based PayPal is also enabling U.S. merchants to transfer cryptocurrency on chain externally to third-party, eligible wallets.
However, the services would not be available for business accounts in New York State at launch, the company said on its website.
Shares of the company have gained nearly 26% so far this year.
