crossroads magazine Pony.ai’s objective is to develop the world’s safest autonomous driving technology. In 2024, the Silicon Valley-based company chose Luxembourg as its Europe- an headquarters and R&D hub. A year later, it became the first company to receive ministerial authorisation to test autonomous vehicles on Luxembourg’s public roads. “Our collaboration with Bolt allows us to validate our technology in real-world traffic conditions,” ex- plains Lucie Hoffmann, General Manager of Pony.ai Europe. Since launching in Luxembourg, Pony.ai has built close partnerships with the Ministries of Economy and Mobility. It is also working with local mobility Supportive regulations, authorities willing to talk, and a growing community working on connected and automated driving – it’s what Anthony Auert, Manag- er Mobility – Business Relationship Management at Luxinnovation, highlighted when he met Bolt’s Marc Naether. They quickly saw an unparalleled fit to work together. “Within a few weeks, I was able to set up a meeting between Bolt and key decision-makers at the Minis- tries of Mobility and Economy,” Mr Auert recalls. They explained Luxembourg’s testing regime for autono- mous vehicles and forthcoming legislation allowing the commercial deployment of self-driving vehicles, including autonomous taxis. He then organised a visit to the AutoMobility Cam- pus in Bissen. Technoport, the campus incubator, of- fers affordable office space and direct access to roads provider Emile Weber to explore how autonomous vehicles could integrate into Luxembourg’s transport system. “Together, these partnerships allow us to ap- proach autonomous mobility as an ecosystem rather than as a technological challenge alone.” Luxembourg offers Pony.ai more than a supportive regulatory environment. The country combines a will- ingness to support real-world testing with a strong technology and mobility community, and close coop- eration between companies and public authorities. “For us, Luxembourg is more than a test location,”. Ms Hoffmann says. “It is a European living lab and an im- portant base for our long-term development in the region.” suited to autonomous driving tests. The campus is also home to mobility companies including autonomous vehicle specialist Ohmio and Pony.ai, Bolt’s project partner. Technoport is now helping Bolt connect with the local ecosystem. “We have already introduced sev- eral deeptech companies that we host to Bolt,” says Martine Streng, Senior Business Developer and Start- up Adviser at Technoport. The incubator’s close con- tacts with local authorities also help the company get quick feedback on testing requests. Mr Auert sees further potential. “Our three neigh- bouring countries are all easily reachable, and we have excellent 5G coverage, making Luxembourg a good place to test autonomous driving in a cross-border setting. We hope to welcome more collaborative pro- jects of this kind in the future.” General Manager Pony.ai Europe Senior Business Developer & Startup Adviser Technoport Manager Mobility Business Relationship Management Luxinnovation COMPANY SPOTLIGHT PARTNERS’ PERSPECTIVE PARTNERS’ PERSPECTIVE © Pony.ai © Luxinnovation, Technoport