Qiming Venture Partners | WeRide teams up with Renault again to provide autonomous shuttle service for French Open
As a key component of Europe's green low-carbon public transit transition strategy, WeRide and the Renault Group have conducted autonomous minibus testing and operations in Paris, the southern French city of Valence, and the Spanish capital of Barcelona, continuously expanding the reach and impact of autonomous driving technology across Europe.
Recently, Qiming Venture Partners portfolio company WeRide (NASDAQ: WRD) announced that it is once again partnering with Roland-Garros premium partner Renault Group to provide the only on-site L4 autonomous shuttle service at the 2025 French Open — the globally watched clay-court Grand Slam tournament.
At last year's French Open, WeRide's autonomous shuttle demonstrated its safety and reliability in real-world, busy urban traffic conditions. Because of this strong performance, the shuttle is returning to Roland-Garros this year, further strengthening the partnership with Renault Group.
This year's WeRide shuttle route spans 2.8 kilometers with a 12-minute travel time, connecting Avenue de la Porte d'Auteuil, Place de la Porte d'Auteuil, P1 Parking Carrefour des Anciens Combattants, and Village de Roland Garros. The service operates daily from May 25 to June 8, running from 10:30 AM to 5:00 PM and 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM.
A new nighttime service window has been added this year from 10:00 PM to midnight, offering spectators greater convenience and extended shuttle hours. Despite the complex nighttime conditions, WeRide's L4 autonomous shuttle operated smoothly and performed excellently in low-light urban environments, navigating complex and varied traffic participants including cars, pedestrians, and cyclists.
WeRide shuttle launches its first nighttime service at Roland-Garros
Tony Han, Founder and CEO of WeRide, said: "We are delighted to return to Roland-Garros with our long-term partner Renault Group to jointly advance our vision of commercializing autonomous mobility in Europe. The WeRide shuttle's second consecutive year of service not only further strengthens external confidence in our technology, but also proves its real-world application maturity. Europe is a key market in our global strategic map. Currently, our autonomous driving products have obtained licenses in five countries including France, and have already launched scaled commercial operations. We are accelerating our expansion, committed to bringing safer, smarter, and greener mobility to more European cities."
Patrick Vergelas, Head of Autonomous Mobility Programs at Renault Group, said: "These pure electric autonomous shuttles fully embody our vision of providing smoother, safer, and more sustainable public transport services to more regions and citizens. Since launching our pilot programs, we no longer ask whether society is ready to accept autonomous public transport — because we have seen that the answer is yes. From Roland-Garros to Barcelona, to Valence in France's Drôme department, we have jointly proven with concrete results that the autonomous public transport service provided by Renault and WeRide is not a promise of the future, but a reality that has already been achieved."
WeRide shuttle service appears at a Paris metro station
The WeRide shuttle is the world's first mass-produced autonomous shuttle built on an automotive-grade platform, equipped with WeRide's full-stack self-developed autonomous driving hardware and software system. It provides safe and reliable autonomous shuttle services across diverse scenarios including urban public roads, airports, resorts, and popular scenic areas. As an important component of Europe's green low-carbon public transit transformation strategy, WeRide and Renault Group have successively conducted autonomous shuttle testing and operations in Paris, the southern French city of Valence, and Barcelona, Spain, continuously expanding the reach and impact of autonomous driving technology across Europe.
Currently, the WeRide shuttle has achieved scaled commercial deployment, conducting testing and operations in 30 cities across China, Singapore, Switzerland, France, Japan, and other countries and regions.
Past Coverage
Qiming Weekly | Qiming Venture Partners Portfolio Company Financing and Updates Vol. 19, 2025
Qiming Venture Partners was founded in 2006. The firm currently manages 11 USD funds and 7 RMB funds, with total assets under management reaching $9.5 billion. Since its inception, Qiming has focused on investing in early and growth-stage outstanding companies in the Technology and Consumer (T&C) and Healthcare sectors.
To date, Qiming Venture Partners has invested in over 580 high-growth innovative companies, of which more than 210 have gone public on the New York Stock Exchange, NASDAQ, Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing, Shanghai Stock Exchange, and Shenzhen Stock Exchange, or exited through M&A and other means. Over 80 portfolio companies have become recognized unicorns or super-unicorns.
Many Qiming portfolio companies have grown into the most influential players in their respective fields, including Xiaomi (01810.HK), Meituan (03690.HK), Bilibili (NASDAQ: BILI, 09626.HK), Zhihu (NYSE: ZH, 02390.HK), Roborock (688169.SH), UBTECH (09880.HK), WeRide (NASDAQ: WRD), Gan & Lee Pharmaceuticals (603087.SH), Tigermed (300347.SZ, 03347.HK), Zai Lab (NASDAQ: ZLAB, 09688.HK), CanSino Biologics (688185.SH, 06185.HK), Schrödinger (NASDAQ: SDGR), MicroPort EP MedTech (688617.SH), Sanyou Medical (688085.SH), Amoy Diagnostics (300685.SZ), Berry Genomics (000710.SZ), SinoCellTech (688520.SH), Yuanxin Technology, ClinChoice, Belief BioMed, Biren Technology, and others.