Estonian ride-hailing platform Bolt said it would begin testing autonomous vehicles in Madrid next year using electric vehicles from Lucid and Nvidia’s Alpamayo Stack software on top of Nvidia’s Hyperion hardware platform, ahead of a commercial robotaxi rollout in Europe.

The move is part of a broader aim to deploy 25,000 Lucid and Nvidia-based robotaxis, beginning in Madrid and targeting entry into Germany and France by the end of 2027.

Bolt said it chose the Spanish capital for initial deployments due to a permitting framework launched in the country that allows testing on public roads.

It said it would begin with gathering real-world data in the capital via trials with a number of vehicles that it plans to be in the double digits.

The company last month announced its deal with Lucid and the use of Nvidia’s Hyperion, but hadn’t indicated what software platform it would use.

Nvidia’s Alpamayo is an AI model developed for autonomous vehicles.

Bolt in September launched a year-long AV testing programme in Luxembourg.

European services

Google sister company Waymo earlier said it plans to begin a robotaxi service in Madrid next year, and is currently shipping modified Jaguar I-Pace vehicles to the city, where they will initially conduct trials and gather testing data.

Uber is aiming to launch a robotaxi service in Madrid with technology from Guangzhou-based WeRide, along with fleet operator Avomo, by the end of this year.