Uber Launches Robotaxi Testing in Munich With Israeli AI Startup Autobrains

Uber announced it will begin robotaxi testing in Munich, Germany, in partnership with Israeli autonomous driving startup Autobrains, using Nvidia's Drive Hyperion computing platform.

The Wall Street Journal reported the initiative on June 2, 2026, describing it as Uber's push to expand autonomous vehicle testing into European cities, which present more complex driving environments than many U.S. test markets.

Autobrains uses a different approach to autonomous driving than many competitors. Rather than relying solely on pre-mapped routes, the company's system is designed to learn from experience and adapt to new situations, similar to how human drivers develop intuition over time.

Nvidia's Drive Hyperion platform provides the computing backbone for the vehicles, processing sensor data from cameras, radar, and lidar in real time.

The Munich launch is part of a broader shift in the autonomous vehicle industry toward what researchers call "physical AI," where systems interact with the real world rather than operating only in digital environments. Nvidia, OpenAI, and Tesla have all increased their focus on physical AI applications in 2026.

Wayve, a UK-based autonomous driving startup, has also been pivoting toward "embodied AI," applying models originally trained for vehicles to broader robotics tasks.

Uber said the Munich testing phase will involve a limited number of vehicles operating in defined areas of the city. The company has not announced a timeline for commercial robotaxi service in Europe.