The ‘Robotaxi War’ Heats Up: Goldman Sachs Goes Bullish On Tesla’s China Rivals

• Goldman Sachs initiated coverage of Pony.ai and WeRide with Buy ratings, noting their "edge" in Autonomous Driving technology and their rapid commercialization in China’s cities and overseas markets.
• Chinese robotaxi rivals are racing ahead with global expansion, while Tesla is struggling to secure approvals in China.
• However, retail sentiment on Stocktwits remains cautious on both Chinese automakers.

Wall Street is turning bullish on China's robotaxi space, with Goldman Sachs forecasting aggressive fleet and revenue growth for Pony AI (PONY) and WeRide (WRD). However, both stocks remain under pressure, and retail sentiment on Stocktwits is treading cautiously.

The bank initiated coverage on both Chinese autonomous car makers with Buy ratings and aggressive price targets. On WeRide, Goldman Sachs has initiated coverage with a target price of HK$54.23, while for Pony AI, it set a target price of HK$234 per share.

On the Hong Kong bourses, WeRide shares were trading down about 3% at HK$20.88, while Pony AI shares were trading at HK$85.25, down 4% at the time of writing this report. The U.S.-listed shares of Pony AI and WeRide were subdued overnight on Thursday.

Goldman’s Catalysts For Bullish Call

The firm expects WeRide’s total revenue to grow at an 80% compound annual growth rate (CAGR) from 2025 to 2030. The firm sees WeRide’s rapid expansion in both the Chinese and overseas markets. The firm said the main driver of rising revenues would be the company's expanding robotaxi operations, with its global fleet growing from 2.8K in 2026 to 415,000 in 2032, as per The Fly.

For Pony AI, Goldman predicts its revenue from 2025 to 2030 will grow at a 100% CAGR, driven by Robotaxi fleet expansion and vehicle deployments that support faster commercialization, according to The Fly. It also sees Pony AI expand from Chinese markets to overseas markets by the end of 2026. 

The in-house PonyWorld 2.0 model with ‘self-improving’ engine is another catalyst to enhance their robotaxi operations and could be a factor in improving the company’s topline.

Tesla Looms Over Robotaxi Race 

The bullish call comes amid rising competition from Elon Musk’s Tesla, which is doubling down on its Full Self-Driving (FSD) ambitions. 

In January, Musk said at the Davos Economic Conference that the company could get approval for its driver-supervised Full Self-Driving (FSD) in China by February. Later in March, Tesla said it would launch its smart driving-assistance feature in China following regulatory approvals, amid complaints that a limited-time free trial of its Full Self-Driving service had been temporarily paused, according to a Reuters report.

"All parties are actively advancing the relevant process, and we will push it to you as soon as it is ready. We are also looking forward to it, please wait patiently," Tesla's customer support said on social media platform Weibo.

PONY, WRD Stocks: Retail Traders Remain Skeptical

However, on Stocktwits, retail sentiment toward both Chinese automakers remained cautious.

For Pony AI, retail sentiment is ‘bearish’ with ‘low’ message volumes.

While on WeRide, retail sentiment is ‘neutral’ amid ‘low’ message volumes.

The U.S.-listed shares of Pony AI declined more than 25% year-to-date, while the U.S.-listed shares of WeRide dipped by more than 9% for the same period.

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