Lucid shares rise on Bolt deal for 25,000 robotaxis in Europe

Lucid shares rise on Bolt deal for 25,000 robotaxis in Europe. Lucid Group Inc (NASDAQ:LCID) shares rose after the electric vehicle maker signed a deal with European ride-hailing platform Bolt to deploy at least 25,000 autonomous vehicles across major European cities. The planned network will pair Lucid's upcoming midsize platform with Nvidia Corp (NASDAQ:NVDA, XETRA:NVD) Hyperion autonomous-vehicle architecture, with SAE Level 4 capability designed for driverless operation in defined conditions. To develop that network, Bolt founder and CEO Markus Villig said the partners would co-design vehicles and software. Villig said European deployment requires data, software, vehicles, and operations to work together for local roads and regulations. Bolt's dedicated Autonomous Driving Solutions unit will then own and operate the fleet, defining vehicle, software, safety and rider-experience requirements. Its responsibilities also include building the charging infrastructure and city partnerships needed to deploy the vehicles at scale. For Lucid, CEO Silvio Napoli said shared autonomous mobility offers a way to extend its technology beyond consumer vehicles, supported by Bolt's reach and operating expertise. Bolt says that reach spans more than 50 countries and 850 cities, with over 200 million customers. Lucid shares traded at $4.39, up 9%, on Thursday afternoon.