December 9, 2025, ABU DHABI – Mercedes-Benz, together with Momenta, a world-leading autonomous driving company, and Lumo, a national UAE taxi company, today announced the joint launch of their luxury robotaxi service in Abu Dhabi. The fleet, based on the new Mercedes-Benz S-Class, is planned to start formal operations in Abu Dhabi next year, with future expansion to additional global markets.
Industry's First Scalable Luxury Model on a Series Production Vehicle Platform
The Mercedes-Benz S-Class robotaxi – the industry's first scalable luxury model on a series production vehicle platform – sets a new global benchmark by fusing the brand's signature experience with cutting-edge SAE-Level 4 technology and Lumo's mature local ecosystem.
From left to right: Joerg Burzer, CTO Mercedes-Benz AG, Xudong Cao, CEO Momenta, H.E. Faisal Abdulaziz Al Bannai, Advisor to the UAE President for Strategic Research and Advanced Technology Affairs and Secretary General of ATRC, Sean Teo, Managing Director Lumo.
H.E. Faisal Abdulaziz Al Bannai, Advisor to the UAE President for Strategic Research and Advanced Technology Affairs and Secretary General of ATRC, said:
"This partnership between Mercedes, Momenta, and Lumo reflects the highest standards of engineering and autonomous intelligence. Bringing these strengths together here in the UAE is no coincidence — the nation offers the ideal environment to test, refine, and showcase the future of mobility. Nowhere else in the world provides the same clarity of vision, speed of execution, and commitment to innovation.“
Joerg Burzer, Chief Technology Officer of Mercedes-Benz AG, said:
"With a robotaxi S-Class, we raise the bar for automated mobility — always combining safety and comfort to set new standards for the industry and intelligent transportation worldwide. All our activities in that field underline Mercedes-Benz’s pioneering role in autonomous driving."
Xudong Cao, CEO of Momenta, said:
"This collaboration deeply integrates Mercedes-Benz's century of engineering excellence, Momenta's cutting-edge AI technology, and Lumo's outstanding local operational capabilities. The robotaxi service, powered by Momenta's R6 reinforcement learning model, is dedicated to delivering a new smart mobility experience that combines safety with quality.”
"Mercedes-Benz Standard" Meets "Chinese Speed"
Partnering with Chinese AI company Momenta, Mercedes-Benz is writing the next chapter in mobility within the autonomous driving arena.
The partnership has deep roots. Mercedes-Benz demonstrated foresight in autonomous driving, becoming the first international automaker to invest in Momenta as early as 2017.
Prior to this cooperation in Abu Dhabi, Mercedes-Benz and Momenta have already launched in China an intelligent driving assistance system leveraging Momenta's Flywheel model, which delivers driver assistance across highways, urban streets, and parking—from one parking space to another. The system first debuted in the all-new Mercedes-Benz fully electric CLA model launched in November. It will be expanded to more Mercedes-Benz models in the future, offering users a safer, smarter, and more sophisticated mobility experience.
As an emblem of German automotive excellence, Mercedes-Benz has established the "Mercedes-Benz Standard" through its rigorous engineering spirit and relentless pursuit of safety. Momenta, as a global leader in autonomous driving, demonstrates remarkable "Chinese Speed" through its leading technology and efficient implementation.
Momenta's "Flywheel & Two Leg Strategy” Accelerates Scalable Robotaxi Deployment
Since its inception, Momenta has adhered to a clear "Flywheel & Two Leg Strategy”. This approach uses a data-driven "Flywheel" to interlink, efficiently coordinate, and rapidly evolve its "Two Legs" – mass-production ADAS and Scalable Robotaxi – enabling faster and more efficient scaling of autonomous driving.
Based on the Momenta R6 reinforcement learning model and employing a unified software architecture and sensor suite for both L2 and L4 features, Momenta can achieve scalable robotaxi deployment and business closure more rapidly. This unique strategic advantage is quickly translating into global commercial deployments.
Prior to the Abu Dhabi project, in September, Momenta and Uber, the world's largest mobility service platform, announced that Munich, Germany, would be the first city for their joint robotaxi project, with testing expected to commence locally in 2026. Additionally, Momenta has already launched robotaxi services in Shanghai, with the first fully driverless robotaxi fleet planned to enter trial operation by the end of this year.
About Momenta
Momenta is a leading autonomous driving technology company, dedicated to reshaping the future of mobility by offering solutions to enable multiple levels of driving autonomy. It has pioneered a unique scalable path toward full autonomous driving by combining a data-driven approach with iterating algorithms – referred to as its “flywheel approach” - as well as a “two- leg” product strategy focusing on both Mpilot, its mass-production-ready assisted driving solutions, and MSD (Momenta Self-Driving), its driving solution targeting full autonomy. Momenta holds extensive knowledge and experience from not only robotaxi testing but also operation in multiple cities in China.
About Mercedes-Benz AG
Mercedes‑Benz AG is part of the Mercedes‑Benz Group AG with a total of around 175,000 employees worldwide and is responsible for the global business of Mercedes‑Benz Cars and Mercedes‑Benz Vans. Ola Källenius is Chairman of the Board of Management of Mercedes‑Benz AG. The company focuses on the development, production and sales of passenger cars, vans and vehicle-related services. Furthermore, the company aspires to be the leader in the fields of electric mobility and vehicle software. The product portfolio comprises the Mercedes‑Benz brand with Mercedes‑AMG, Mercedes‑Maybach and G‑Class with their all-electric models as well as products of the smart brand. Mercedes‑Benz AG is one of the world's largest manufacturers of high-end passenger cars. In 2024 it sold around 2,4 million passenger cars and vans. In its two business segments, Mercedes‑Benz AG is continually expanding its worldwide production network with more than 30 production sites on four continents, while gearing itself to meet the requirements of electric mobility. At the same time, the company is constructing and extending its global battery production network on three continents. As sustainability is the guiding principle of the Mercedes‑Benz strategy and for the company itself, this means creating lasting value for all stakeholders: for customers, employees, investors, business partners and society as a whole. The basis for this is the sustainable business strategy of the Mercedes‑Benz Group. The company thus takes responsibility for the economic, ecological and social effects of its business activities and looks at the entire value chain.
About Lumo
Lumo is a premium limousine robotaxi utilizing advanced AI and autonomous technologies to make your trips luxurious, comfortable and safe. Lumo is operated by K2, an Abu Dhabi owned advanced autonomous technologies company that has already gotten federal approval to operate autonomous mobility vehicles in the UAE (initial operations will be in Abu Dhabi). Lumo harnesses advanced technology to create a cleaner, smarter, and more effortless way for people to move through their cities, offering a future where mobility is intuitive, sustainable, and seamlessly integrated into the rhythm of daily life.
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