MOSCOW, June 27. /TASS/. Self-Driving Group (SDG), an international subsidiary of Yandex, has started testing self-driving cars in Serbia’s capital of Belgrade, a source familiar with the company’s activities told TASS. The first cars will be rolled out in the New Belgrade municipality.

"The International Self-Driving Group that will be spun off into its own independent company from Yandex after restructuring, has started testing autonomous vehicles on Belgrade’s roads," the source said. The press service of Yandex confirmed the information to TASS.

Yandex has already launched a pilot program of the so-called robotaxi in Moscow’s Yasenevo region. Any trip in a robotaxi costs 100 rubles ($1.17). Any users over the age of 18 can try out the service.

On June 15, Yandex also officially announced the opening of an office in Belgrade, adding that a second office in the same city was planned to be opened in the fall. Staff from various countries will be able to work in the office, while most employees of international hubs are located particularly in Serbia, according to Yandex.

The IT company tested self-driving vehicles in the US as well, though road tests that were carried out in the city of Ann Arbor, Michigan, were temporarily suspended in early 2022. Back then the company also fired a number of employees involved in testing self-driving cars and delivery robots.

That said, in December 2022, Yandex registered the legal entity Yandex Self Driving Group Inc. in Austin, Texas, according to files released on the website of the office of Texas’ financial inspector seen by TASS earlier. Consequently, Yandex, which was set up at the end of 2020 in Delaware, is currently represented in three states: Texas, Michigan and Massachusetts.