Elmo’s driverless taxi service expands to Germany’s innovative City of Heidelberg

The City of Heidelberg has selected Elmo’s remotely controlled taxi service as one of its Top Innovations, with operations scheduled to launch on public streets in 2025. This decision follows the introduction of Germany’s new Straßenverkehr-Fernlenk-Verordnung (remote driving regulation) in June 2025 — a major milestone for Tallinn-based Elmo, Germany, and the entire teledriving technology sector.

Elmo made history in 2022 as the first company in the world to launch a public, road-legal doorstep car sharing service operated entirely via remote control. In June 2025, Elmo achieved another global first by introducing a teledrivable taxi service in partnership with German taxi platform Bliq. The upcoming launch in Heidelberg marks a significant leap forward, with the city’s endorsement validating both the potential of remote driving technology and the maturity of Elmo’s solutions.

The selection was made in close cooperation with the City of Tallinn and Tehnopol Science and Business Park, under the Tallinnovation program.

“Tallinnovation has become an important platform for Tallinn, where smart, city-developing solutions are born. This year’s cooperation with Heidelberg takes its impact to a new level – it shows that our entrepreneurs’ ideas are internationally competitive and worthy of export to other cities. International partnerships strengthen Tallinn’s reputation as an innovative and open city, and offer our companies a valuable springboard to new markets,” said Margot Roose, Tallinn’s Deputy Mayor.

“Adapting the ‘Test in Heidelberg’ programme through cooperation between Heidelberg and Tallinn creates a unique opportunity to connect two vibrant innovation ecosystems. By testing Estonian startups’ solutions in Heidelberg, we can bring fresh ideas to our city, explore their potential in real-life environments, and strengthen the bridge between our business communities. We see tremendous potential in this – not only for the participating entrepreneurs but also for our cities, which can learn from each other and shape the future together,” added Mareike Rimmler, Project Manager of Heidelberg’s innovation team.

About Heidelberg

With a population of around 160,000, Heidelberg is renowned for its historic old town, castle, and prestigious research university. It is a leading science and industry hub in Germany, offering a strong economic base and a vibrant innovation ecosystem.

About Elmo

Elmo is a global pioneer in road-legal remote driving technology, technology operating in Estonia, Finland, Lithuania, Canada, Ukraine and soon in Germany. Its technology allows vehicles to be teledriven without a driver physically present in the car, enabling sustainable, flexible, and efficient mobility solutions.