Mercedes previews refreshed S-Class, launches Level 4 robotaxi pilot in Abu Dhabi

Mercedes-Benz has previewed a prototype of the refreshed S-Class while outlining bigger ambitions in autonomous driving. The brand announced a joint SAE Level 4 robotaxi program with its Chinese ADAS partner Momenta, naming the facelifted S-Class as the platform for the service.

The pilot will start in Abu Dhabi. Operations there will be run by local partner Lumo, an entity linked to tech company K2 that holds federal approval in the UAE to work with autonomous vehicles. After proving the concept in one market, Mercedes plans to extend the project to other countries. The Abu Dhabi launch looks like a pragmatic step, beginning where oversight already accommodates self-driving fleets.

Mercedes also emphasizes that this is not the only Level 4 effort: some projects are aimed at private buyers, others at commercial use. The shared objective is to gather data and speed up development. The company cites its in-house MB.OS as the technological backbone and is exploring broader collaborations, including the prospect of a robotaxi ecosystem built on the Nvidia Drive AV platform. Taken together, it reads as a dual-track strategy that builds capability while stitching together the right partners.

Through it all, the S-Class remains the brand’s testbed for autonomy. Mercedes has received permission to conduct Level 4 trials in Beijing on selected city streets and highways, using the S-Class as the test car with a dedicated sensor suite that includes LiDAR, radar, and cameras. Leaning on the flagship hints at an effort to pair advanced sensing with the kind of refinement S-Class buyers expect.