By Bosphorus News Economy Desk
Martı has signed a multi-year partnership with US autonomous vehicle developer Tensor to bring driverless ride-hailing vehicles to Türkiye, although the companies have not disclosed when commercial operations could begin.
The agreement covers the planned purchase and deployment of Tensor vehicles through Martı's mobility platform. Users would eventually be able to request the vehicles through the Martı application.
The companies did not announce a fleet size, investment value, delivery schedule or pilot city.
Martı disclosed the partnership in a filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission, but the detailed commercial agreement was not attached. The filing included the companies' press release without revealing minimum purchase commitments, pricing or financing terms.
That leaves the scale and binding financial obligations of the partnership unclear.
Tensor markets its vehicle as a Level 4 autonomous system capable of operating without a human driver under defined conditions. Level 4 autonomy does not mean the vehicle can operate without restrictions on every road or in all traffic and weather conditions.
The company says production is planned through VinFast's facility in Vietnam, with initial customer deliveries expected in the second half of 2026.
No Tensor vehicle has yet been announced as delivered, tested or approved for commercial passenger operations in Türkiye.
Tensor holds autonomous vehicle testing permissions in California, but public regulatory records do not show that it operates a large-scale, fully driverless commercial ride-hailing service comparable to established robotaxi operators.
Martı said its platform currently serves 20 Turkish cities, including Istanbul, Ankara and İzmir. The announcement does not state that autonomous vehicles will be deployed across all of those markets.
Any commercial launch would also require Türkiye to resolve regulatory questions surrounding vehicle approval, public-road testing, insurance, accident liability, data processing and commercial passenger transport licensing.
Türkiye has expanded research and infrastructure work for connected and autonomous vehicles, including test scenarios and smart-road projects. Existing official documents, however, do not establish a general licensing framework for fully driverless paid passenger services in urban traffic.
Technical approval of an autonomous vehicle would not by itself authorise Martı to operate it as a commercial ride-hailing service.
The regulatory issue is particularly important because an autonomous fleet would differ from Martı's existing TAG model, which the company presents as a cost-sharing arrangement between private drivers and passengers.
Vehicles owned or controlled by Martı or a fleet partner and used for paid passenger transport would fall more directly under commercial transport rules.
The companies also did not explain whether the vehicles would be purchased by Martı, financed through leasing, supplied by third-party fleet operators or supported by Tensor.
The partnership gives Martı an early position in Türkiye's emerging autonomous mobility market, but the announcement remains a deployment plan rather than a confirmed robotaxi launch.
Sources: Martı SEC filings, Martı Investor Relations, Tensor, California Department of Motor Vehicles, California Public Utilities Commission, Türkiye's Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure, Bosphorus News review and reporting.