Rimac one-ups Tesla by revealing an entire fleet of robotaxis before Tesla can launch its own
Published on Dec 05, 2025 at 4:46 AM (UTC+4)
by Daisy Edwards
Last updated on Dec 04, 2025 at 7:46 PM (UTC+4)
Edited by
Emma Matthews
Rimac has decided to one-up Tesla by revealing an entire fleet of robotaxis before Tesla can properly launch its own.
The Croatian EV maker has shocked the industry by showing a complete autonomous fleet ahead of Tesla’s long-promised version.
The platform is called Verne, named after the iconic French author Jules Verne, and it has been engineered from scratch to operate with no wheel, no pedals, and no human driver.
And CEO Mate Rimac is alleging that Verne is a finished product supported by a full-service ecosystem.
Rimac robotaxis take shape
According to Mate Rimac himself, Verne is a compact two-seater EV pod built solely for hailing as a taxi.
The interior focuses on comfort with lounge-style seats, a widescreen display, ambient lighting, and a premium sound system.
These vehicles use special hardware and software, combining LIDAR, radar, and cameras to handle dense city routes without any help from humans.
Rimac is also building the infrastructure to support the fleet, and riders will use an app to summon a vehicle and adjust their cabin settings before pickup.
Each robotaxi connects to a new facility called the Mothership, which handles charging, cleaning, maintenance, and diagnostics.
The first rollout is planned for Zagreb in 2026, and Rimac says it has agreements with more than 10 cities across Europe and the Middle East, with discussions underway for additional locations.
Tesla now watches the race change
Tesla has talked about robotaxis for years now, but has yet to show the world a production-ready vehicle.
As such, Verne has shifted the conversation because Rimac is presenting a complete and fully ready solution.
The company has already begun work on a dedicated factory to build the fleet, signaling a direct move into mobility services.
If Rimac hits its targets, it could become the first brand to launch a premium autonomous ride-hailing network.
That would put Tesla in the rare position of responding to a rival that delivered a full robotaxi system before Tesla, despite Tesla talking about it for a lot longer.
Tesla Full Self-Driving timeline
2020: FSD ‘beta’ first released to select testers in the US
2021-2022: Rollout expands, as hardware updates come in
Early 2024: FSD ‘beta’ is now labeled ‘supervised’, meaning driver supervision is still required
2025: International expansion targets for FSD (Supervised) set in regions like Europe and China
Mid-2025: FSD v14 update announced
Late 2025: Roll-out of FSD v14 builds
Early 2026: Unsupervised FSD rollout goal
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Daisy Edwards is a Content Writer at supercarblondie.com. Daisy has more than five years’ experience as a qualified journalist, having graduated with a History and Journalism degree from Goldsmiths, University of London and a dissertation in vintage electric vehicles. Daisy specializes in writing about cars, EVs, tech and luxury lifestyle. When she's not writing, she's at a country music concert or working on one of her many unfinished craft projects.
