The 17th edition of the Nepal Automobile Dealers Association (NADA) Auto Show 2025 kicked off on Tuesday at the Exhibition Hall, Bhrikutimandap, with Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli inaugurating the show.

The six-day exhibit has more than 100 brand stalls, including two-wheelers, four-wheelers, and three-wheelers, automobile spare parts, helmets, accessories, and lubricants, as well as banks and insurance companies. The auto show is expected to attract more than 100,000 visitors.

The organiser said the visitors can observe the technological changes in the automobile sector, including robots and flying taxis, which are major attractions in the auto show.

The NADA Auto Show showcased the flying taxi. However, the flying taxi was not allowed to operate, even for demonstration, during the auto show.

A flying taxi (also called an air taxi or urban air mobility vehicle) is a small, electric, or hybrid aircraft designed to transport passengers short distances in urban or regional areas—basically, like an airborne version of Uber or traditional taxis. The key features of flying taxis are that they reduce road congestion in cities, they are fast to travel across urban areas, especially during traffic jams, and they are also eco-friendly if powered by renewable energy.

EHang, a Chinese company, developed the EH184 passenger drone (first shown in 2016) and has been targeting autonomous urban air mobility services. In 2025, they received Chinese aviation authority’s approval for commercial unmanned electric Vertical Take-Off and Landing (eVTOL) passenger flights in Guangzhou and Hefei, marking perhaps China’s first permitted autonomous flying taxi services.

Dubai began operating its Dubai Aerial Taxi service on 29 June 2025, deploying Joby Aviation’s electric eVTOL aircraft under the authority of the Roads and Transport Authority and the Dubai Civil Aviation Authority.

“We brought the flying taxi to deliver a message that Nepal is also not far from adopting new technology in the automobile sector,” said Anup Baral, coordinator of NADA Auto Show 2025. Nepal has not had any concept of a flying taxi till now. “We hope the arrival of flying taxis will help the government prepare the rules to operate them.”

The auto show has 100 percent electric vehicle (EV) participation even in the commercial vehicle side as well, with only one internal combustion vehicle brand, Baral said. Visitors can observe new technology and safety features in EVs.

At the door of festivities, “we expect good business from the auto show”, he said.

Since its inception in 1998, the NADA Auto Show has grown into Nepal's largest exhibition, attracting increasing participation from companies and auto enthusiasts.

A newly formed Nepal Automobile Importer and Manufacturers Association (NAIMA) organised a similar auto show from August 6 to 11 at the same venue.