Robot-driven flying taxis will soon take passengers to Dubai's airport


This week, Dubai said that by July it plans to have a new airport shuttle system up and running that combines driverless taxis, quadcopter drones, and the flying cars that have been a staple of science fiction since the mid-20th century. The Ehang 184 passenger drones, made in China, will be able to transport one passenger and a small suitcase over Dubai's congested streets with the push of a button, Dubai's Roads and Transport Authority promises. And the drones have already been tested around Dubai, authority director general Mattar Al Tayer tells The New York Times. This "is not just a model but it has really flown in Dubai skies," he said. You can see the drones in action in this slick video from the transport authority:
Dubai is making a big push to adopt driverless technology, with its ruler, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, committing the emirate to a quarter of all journeys conducted by driverless vehicles by 2030. The eight-copter Ehang drones can travel up to 100 miles per hour, but Dubai said they will normally travel no more than 62 miles an hour, the Times reports, and if something goes wrong, they'll land as soon as is safe.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
-
5 museum-grade cartoons about Trump's Smithsonian purge
Cartoons Artists take on institutional rebranding, exhibit interpretation, and more
-
Settling the West Bank: a death knell for a Palestine state?
In the Spotlight The reality on the ground is that the annexation of the West Bank is all but a done deal
-
Sudoku medium: August 23, 2025
The Week's daily medium sudoku puzzle
-
New York court tosses Trump's $500M fraud fine
Speed Read A divided appeals court threw out a hefty penalty against President Trump for fraudulently inflating his wealth
-
Trump said to seek government stake in Intel
Speed Read The president and Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan reportedly discussed the proposal at a recent meeting
-
US to take 15% cut of AI chip sales to China
Speed Read Nvidia and AMD will pay the Trump administration 15% of their revenue from selling artificial intelligence chips to China
-
NFL gets ESPN stake in deal with Disney
Speed Read The deal gives the NFL a 10% stake in Disney's ESPN sports empire and gives ESPN ownership of NFL Network
-
Samsung to make Tesla chips in $16.5B deal
Speed Read Tesla has signed a deal to get its next-generation chips from Samsung
-
FCC greenlights $8B Paramount-Skydance merger
Speed Read The Federal Communications Commission will allow Paramount to merge with the Hollywood studio Skydance
-
Tesla reports plummeting profits
Speed Read The company may soon face more problems with the expiration of federal electric vehicle tax credits
-
Dollar faces historic slump as stocks hit new high
Speed Read While stocks have recovered post-Trump tariffs, the dollar has weakened more than 10% this year