Pony AI's robotaxi revenue surged nearly eightfold in the second quarter, but the Chinese autonomous-driving company's net loss widened as it continued to invest in fleet expansion and commercialization.

Net loss attributable to Pony AI was $59.8 million, widening from $53.1 million a year earlier, the company said Tuesday. Revenue grew 69% to $36.2 million.

The Nasdaq-listed company, one of China's big three robotaxi operators, reported sharply higher robotaxi services revenue, which surged to $12.1 million from $1.5 million. That marked the first time the business has accounted for one-third of total revenue, Pony AI said.

Revenue from robotruck services climbed 40% to $13.3 million, while that from the intelligent solutions business--previously known as licensing and applications--increased 3.9% to $10.8 million.

Gross margin improved to 17.5% from 16.1% a year ago and 16.8% in the first quarter.

Citi analysts said in a note that effective operating expense control helped the company report a smaller-than-expected loss.

Pony AI has been pushing hard to expand both at home and overseas as demand for driverless ride-hailing services rises. The company in May said it expected to grow its global robotaxi fleet to 3,500 vehicles by the end of the year, up from the 3,000 targeted previously.

Chief Executive James Peng said Pony AI plans to deploy a few hundred robotaxis in overseas markets in the second half of the year, with the remainder of its planned fleet expansion focused on China.

The company will focus on increasing its robotaxi fleet size in cities it currently operates in, as well as expanding in China to new locations such as Hangzhou, Changsha and the Greater Bay Area, Peng said.