Key Takeaways
- Mate Rimac’s P3 Mobility firm aims to revolutionize urban transport with superior robotaxis.
- Inequality in transport access drives Rimac to democratize transport with a focus on tailored services.
- Rimac criticizes existing robotaxi designs and plans P3 launch with user-centered compact hatchbacks.
Mate Rimac made waves when he launched the Rimac Nevera, upsetting the establishment by putting the hurt on traditional hypercars and their combustion engines. Then, he was handed the reins to Bugatti, which directly led to the continuation of combustion at the famed French automaker. Now, he says that the P3 Mobility firm he backs will show every other robotaxi company how things should be done when its pilot program launches next year.
Rimac
Rimac Automobili was founded in 2009 by its namesake CEO, Mate Rimac, but the foundations for his electric vehicle company were laid in 2007 when Mate destroyed the engine in his E30 BMW 3 Series and decided to create an electric package to make it much faster. To cut a long story short, the Concept One was revealed in 2011, and its successor, the Nevera, is now the benchmark for hi-po EVs.
- Founded
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2009
- Founder
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Mate Rimac
- Headquarters
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Zagreb, Croatia
- Owned By
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Bugatti Rimac (Rimac Group & Porsche AG)
- Current CEO
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Mate Rimac
Speaking with the UK’s Auto Express, the genius inventor and CEO talked about his dream of “democratizing” urban transport, noting that while many people have similar levels of access to the internet and technology when it comes to things like smartphones, the scales are skewed when it comes to mobility; a wealthy person can have everything they want from their mode of transport while a person less well off must put up with uncleanliness and a lack of personal comfort options for their trip.
“The example I like to use is that of a school girl, [who] can have an iPhone and a billionaire cannot have a better one […] you cannot have better internet, better Google; it’s democratized. But the billionaire will get into his Rolls-Royce, have plenty of room, a sober driver who’s focused on driving, his music, [and] his temperature. It’ll be clean and safe in the car, while [the] school girl will have to use other modes of transport, which are not those things.”
– Mate Rimac, P3 Mobility Founder, talking about transportation disparity between wealth classes.
Robotaxis Better Than Chauffeured Limos?
Continuing with the thoughts quoted above, Rimac said, “What you will see [with P3 Mobility robotaxis] is that the school girl can have a better experience than the billionaire in the Rolls-Royce: safer, more convenient, cleaner, more tailored to her – her music, her internet services and overall the best experience possible.” How will P3 achieve this?
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Through so-called “motherships,” where the cars will be cleaned, serviced, and recharged, “It’s not the car that we will be selling – we will be service providers,” said Rimac. “When we come to a city, we want to come there with a large number of cars and also with the motherships.”
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Mate Rimac Teases P3 Robotaxi As City Slicking Hatchback
The CEO of Bugatti-Rimac has taken to Instagram to give us a preview of the project that has been in development for the last five years.
P3 Robotaxis Won’t Be Ugly Or Slowly Developed
It sounds like P3 has the right ideas for ensuring that its robotaxi service can stand out as special from a service standpoint, but Rimac also believes that the mobility company has an edge that others do not. “We think most of the startups are doing it wrong, and the OEMs are too slow, so we are in quite a good position to do it,” said the CEO. False starts at Cruise, which is supported by General Motors, illustrate this well, but Mate didn’t stop his criticism there, adding that most startups have created robotaxis that look like “toasters.”
“They’re like little trains on rubber wheels, because on [Microsoft] Excel, it looks good that you cram more people into the same space, which people don’t like to do.”
– Mate Rimac, speaking about common robotaxi designs.
Earlier this year, Rimac described P3’s design as “a car but a completely different type” to what is normally seen on the roads. His claims appear to ring true, as the first teaser of the vehicle shows what appears to be a compact hatchback. We’ll find out exactly what he’s talking about on June 26, with commercial operation planned to kick off in P3’s hometown of Zagreb, Croatia, in 2026 and other parts of Europe the year after. Hopefully, P3 has plans to bring its robotaxis here someday, setting up a battle between it and Tesla robotaxis, also due to be revealed this year.
Related
Elon Musk Says Tesla Robotaxi Is Coming In August
On Friday, a report claimed that the Model 2 was canned in favor of robotaxis. Musk denied this but has now confirmed the robotaxi reveal date.
Source: Auto Express