James Peng on autonomous driving
From Dr. James Peng, Pony.ai - Autonomous Vehicles: Present, Challenges & Future @Nexus Luxembourg 2025 · · Nexus Luxembourg
“The key challenge of autonomous driving is not just perception or planning, but interacting safely with other vehicles, pedestrians, and cyclists. Generative AI and large models have enormously benefited simulations and end-to-end training.”
On , James Peng, Cofounder at Pony.ai, spoke about autonomous driving during Dr. James Peng, Pony.ai - Autonomous Vehicles: Present, Challenges & Future @Nexus Luxembourg 2025 on Nexus Luxembourg.
About James Peng
James Peng, co-founder and CEO of Pony.ai, has been focused on scaling the company's autonomous driving technology. In mid-2025, he announced the launch of the company's seventh-generation robotaxi (Gen 7), which he stated features all automotive-grade components and costs one-third of the previous generation. Peng said the company is preparing for mass production, with over 100 vehicles already produced and testing licenses obtained in several Chinese cities. He described 2025 as an inflection point for the industry, moving from solving technical problems to solving the challenge of scale, and stated that Pony.ai's goal is to deploy thousands to millions of vehicles globally. Peng has also discussed global expansion and partnerships. He noted that Pony.ai is launching fleets in Luxembourg, South Korea, and other markets, and described Luxembourg as a "launch pad" for Europe. He confirmed discussions with Tencent about integrating robotaxi booking into WeChat, calling it a "win-win collaboration" for user acquisition. Regarding U.S. operations, Peng said the company has no plans for large-scale commercial operations there but would consider selling its U.S. operations if it benefits shareholders. He also stated that Pony.ai is exploring a potential secondary listing in Hong Kong. Peng has repeatedly emphasized that the company's data shows its fully driverless systems are "ten times safer" than human drivers.