Tesla Among First to Test at Dubai’s New Mobility Labs

Dubai has opened a new proving ground for self-driving cars, and Tesla is already on the test roster.

The emirate’s Roads and Transport Authority, working with the Dubai Integrated Economic Zones Authority, inaugurated Dubai Mobility Labs at Dubai Silicon Oasis on Friday.

RTA calls it the smartest integrated ground-testing facility of its kind in the Middle East. The site combines controlled test tracks with public-road trials, giving companies a structured path from development to real-world deployment.

The numbers are big. Dubai Mobility Labs runs 248 test scenarios. A total of 195 sit inside a multi-purpose area that replicates real traffic, split into 143 core scenarios plus 52 added through design enhancements.

Tests cover sensing, decision-making, interaction with other road users, and response to traffic and weather, building on Tesla’s extreme heat testing in Dubai. Trials also extend to public roads along a route from Dubai Silicon Oasis to Al Qudra.

Tesla is not waiting on the sidelines. Khaleej Times reports the facility has already hosted trials involving autonomous driving technologies and vehicles from WeRide, Pony.ai and Tesla.

That early presence matters. Dubai’s Smart Self-Driving Transport Strategy aims to convert 25 percent of all mobility journeys in the emirate into autonomous trips by 2030, and the labs are the gateway to that market, alongside projects like The Boring Company’s Dubai Loop.

RTA appointed DEKRA to operate the facility for its first three years. The testing firm will run day-to-day operations, organize testing slots, and keep trials compliant with international safety standards.

What comes next is commercial deployment. Dubai keeps adding Teslas to its taxi fleet, following Dubai Taxi’s 269-Tesla order, and regulatory approval is the remaining hurdle before testing turns into real service.