emirates7 -
-The Dubai Crown Prince shared a video of the ride on his Instagram account, showing him in the passenger seat of a fully driverless car
Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, shared a glimpse of Dubai’s driverless future on his Instagram feed, showing himself in the passenger seat of a fully autonomous vehicle.
The video appears to have been filmed near Burj Al Arab in Jumeirah. The Crown Prince, who also serves as the Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Defence, and Chairman of The Executive Council of Dubai, captioned the post: "Hands off. Future On. #SelfDrivingCar."
In the clip, the vehicle is seen driving on its own, with no one behind the wheel. As it reaches a junction, the steering wheel turns left. Matar Al Tayer, Director General of Dubai's Roads and Transport Authority (RTA), is seen sitting in the back seat of the car.
The Instagram video highlights Dubai's ongoing efforts to test and introduce advanced smart mobility solutions on public roads. Take a look at the video here:
By sharing the moment on his Instagram account, which has over 17 million followers, and by riding in the autonomous vehicle himself, Sheikh Hamdan showcased his confidence in driverless technology and how Dubai is ready to roll them out.
'Your Highness, Can I take a selfie?'
The voice heard in the video saying, “Your Highness, can I take a selfie?” is that of Liang Zhang, Managing Director for Europe and MENA at Baidu, the operator of Apollo Go.
RTA has given Baidu's Apollo Go the first licence of its kind to test fully autonomous vehicles on public roads without a safety driver. The company also opened an autonomous vehicle operations and control centre at Dubai Science Park to manage these tests.
The permit allows Apollo Go to run driverless trials in designated areas, including Jumeirah, Zabeel, and other parts of Dubai.
The trials began last year with a fleet of around 50 sixth-generation RT6 self-driving vehicles navigating Dubai roads under supervision. During these runs, journalists from Khaleej Times were invited to experience the autonomous taxis on Jumeirah Road, where the cars reached around 72km/h and changed lanes on their own.
According to Apollo Go, this is the first time its self-driving service has operated outside China, and the company plans to grow its fleet to more than 1,000 vehicles in the coming years.
Khaleej Times earlier reported that the robotaxi services could be seen on the roads as early as the first quarter of 2026, moving from trial runs to regular operations.
-The Dubai Crown Prince shared a video of the ride on his Instagram account, showing him in the passenger seat of a fully driverless car
Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, shared a glimpse of Dubai’s driverless future on his Instagram feed, showing himself in the passenger seat of a fully autonomous vehicle.
The video appears to have been filmed near Burj Al Arab in Jumeirah. The Crown Prince, who also serves as the Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Defence, and Chairman of The Executive Council of Dubai, captioned the post: "Hands off. Future On. #SelfDrivingCar."
In the clip, the vehicle is seen driving on its own, with no one behind the wheel. As it reaches a junction, the steering wheel turns left. Matar Al Tayer, Director General of Dubai's Roads and Transport Authority (RTA), is seen sitting in the back seat of the car.
The Instagram video highlights Dubai's ongoing efforts to test and introduce advanced smart mobility solutions on public roads. Take a look at the video here:
By sharing the moment on his Instagram account, which has over 17 million followers, and by riding in the autonomous vehicle himself, Sheikh Hamdan showcased his confidence in driverless technology and how Dubai is ready to roll them out.
'Your Highness, Can I take a selfie?'
The voice heard in the video saying, “Your Highness, can I take a selfie?” is that of Liang Zhang, Managing Director for Europe and MENA at Baidu, the operator of Apollo Go.
RTA has given Baidu's Apollo Go the first licence of its kind to test fully autonomous vehicles on public roads without a safety driver. The company also opened an autonomous vehicle operations and control centre at Dubai Science Park to manage these tests.
The permit allows Apollo Go to run driverless trials in designated areas, including Jumeirah, Zabeel, and other parts of Dubai.
The trials began last year with a fleet of around 50 sixth-generation RT6 self-driving vehicles navigating Dubai roads under supervision. During these runs, journalists from Khaleej Times were invited to experience the autonomous taxis on Jumeirah Road, where the cars reached around 72km/h and changed lanes on their own.
According to Apollo Go, this is the first time its self-driving service has operated outside China, and the company plans to grow its fleet to more than 1,000 vehicles in the coming years.
Khaleej Times earlier reported that the robotaxi services could be seen on the roads as early as the first quarter of 2026, moving from trial runs to regular operations.
الرجاء الانتظار ...