WeRide Inc. (NASDAQ: WRD) announced a partnership with ELEVATE Slovakia to deploy autonomous vehicles in the country, marking Slovakia's first autonomous driving program.

The program represents WeRide's fourth European market after France, Belgium, and Switzerland. Slovakia becomes part of WeRide's global operations spanning over 40 cities across 12 countries.

ELEVATE Slovakia is a multi-stakeholder initiative involving the Ministry of Transport of the Slovak Republic, Ministry of Investments, Regional Development and Informatization, City of Bratislava, Slovak Post, academic institutions, and private companies.

WeRide will deploy four vehicle types: Robotaxi, Robobus, Robovan, and Robosweeper. The vehicles will support passenger mobility with the transport ministry, parcel logistics with Slovak Post, and sanitation operations with municipal partners including Bratislava.

Testing is scheduled to begin in Bratislava during the first half of 2026, with expansion planned to Košice and the High Tatras resort area. All testing will be conducted under Ministry of Transport supervision to ensure regulatory compliance.

"I view the signing of this agreement as the beginning of a process that will allow Slovakia to responsibly and in a controlled manner test autonomous technologies in transport," said Minister of Transport Jozef Ráž.

WeRide CEO Dr. Tony Han said the company plans to operate over 2,600 active Robotaxis by the end of 2026 and tens of thousands globally by 2030.

Slovak technology company DiusAi will serve as the technological and implementation partner, handling system integration and local operational support under the agreement.

The information is based on a company press release.