Bliq ai has received approval to test driverless cars on public roads in Helsinki, making Finland the second EU member state after Estonia to permit the company’s autonomous vehicles on public roads.
The Berlin-based mobility startup develops driverless technology for personal and commercial use through a subscription model.
Bliq made headlines in May by securing Europe’s first fully driverless road operations approval in Estonia.
Operations in Finland will begin with a safety driver onboard.
“We will initially deploy at least 25 vehicles in the greater Helsinki area until the end of 2026,” Julian Glaab, CEO and Co-founder of Bliq ai, told IZON.
A Hyundai IONIQ 5 equipped with Bliq’s sensors and Level 2 driving system will be used for the pilot.
The Finnish authorities accepted the regulatory permit previously drafted by the Estonian transport department, helping streamline the approval process.
“There are several further bilateral agreements within the European Union that we plan to use to obtain additional regulatory approvals through the end of 2026,” said Glaab. “The key is to develop a deep understanding of the regulatory nuances between countries to take advantage of existing exemptions instead of having to wait for future regulations that are still not fully clear.”
Thanks to the recent UN-level adoption of globally harmonized rules for automated vehicles, Bliq expects vehicle regulation to become much simpler over the next few years.
“What remains operationally complex are zoning and operating-area permits, as well as regulations around specific business models, such as passenger transport, which vary significantly between states,” Glaab added.
The approval follows Europe’s first commercial robotaxi deployment in Croatia earlier this year, marking another step toward broader adoption of autonomous vehicles across the continent.
