Croatian startup readies self-driving taxi Verne for launch

Autonomous vehicle startup Project 3 Mobility (P3), set up by the founder of Croatian electric vehicle maker Rimac Group, presented its self-driving robotaxi named after French writer Jules Verne ahead of a planned launch in 2026. The startup expects that its fully autonomous two-seat electric vehicle Verne will be able to run urban robotaxi services, complete with an app for consumers and a hub for charging, cleaning and maintenance, starting first in Zagreb. Rimac Group CEO Mate Rimac said the car had been designed for two passengers for comfort and safety and to cover the majority of taxi rides, 90% of which he said were with one or two people. Rimac said P3's 300 employees have been working for five years to develop the car from scratch, using self-driving software from Israel-based Mobileye Global. Zagreb and 10 other cities around the world have already signed contracts for Verne taxis, named after the writer of 'Around the World in Eighty Days'. Talks with 20 more cities are underway, said P3 CEO Marko Pejkovic. - Report from Reuters Subscribe to the ABS-CBN News channel! - http://bit.ly/TheABSCBNNews Watch full episodes on iWantTFC for FREE here: http://iwanttfc.com Visit our website at http://news.abs-cbn.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/abscbnNEWS Twitter: https://twitter.com/abscbnnews Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/abscbnnews