Uber is pouring hundreds of millions into EV maker Lucid and self-driving tech startup Nuro to launch a premium robotaxi service.
As part of the deal, Uber will invest $300 million in Lucid and buy at least 20,000 Gravity SUVs over six years. Uber and its partners will operate vehicles equipped with Nuro’s self-driving tech, launching service in a major U.S. city next year.
Production of the custom Lucid Gravity models is set to begin in late 2026. Uber is also investing a larger, undisclosed sum—described as a “multi-hundred-million dollar” figure—into Nuro.
The partnership took about a year to finalize, Nuro co-founder and president Dave Ferguson told TechCrunch.
Uber Took a Deep Dive Before Choosing Nuro as Robotaxi Partner
“That likely speaks to the depth of the deal,” he said, noting that Uber was serious about making a major investment in a robotaxi program and evaluated nearly every autonomous vehicle company before deciding.
“We were excited to ultimately be the partner they selected,” Ferguson added.
Ferguson noted that engineers at Lucid and Nuro have already made headway on the project, including testing a prototype autonomous vehicle on a closed track at Nuro’s proving grounds in Las Vegas.
He said Lucid’s Gravity SUVs are ideal since they have the hardware redundancies required for Level 3 automation.
Lucid’s Built-In Redundancies Smooth the Path to Level 4 Autonomy
The final product, however, will be a Level 4 vehicle, capable of fully autonomous driving under certain conditions without any human input. Ferguson added that the built-in redundancies made it “almost a delight” to integrate Nuro’s self-driving technology into the Gravity SUVs.
In the past two years, Uber has partnered with AV tech firms to explore various real-world self-driving applications. The company now works with more than 18 partners worldwide across ride-hailing, delivery, and freight. This year, Uber announced partnerships with May Mobility, Volkswagen, and Chinese AV firms Momenta, WeRide, and Baidu.
Uber’s most prominent U.S. partnership is with Waymo, currently operating “Waymo on Uber” services in Austin and Atlanta.
This latest deal highlights the scale of Uber’s financial commitment to gaining a strong foothold—and potentially a leadership role—in the rapidly evolving autonomous vehicle industry.
The deal validates Nuro, which has raised over $2 billion since 2016. Originally, Nuro focused on building a fleet of low-speed delivery robots using its autonomous driving technology. After burning cash and facing funding challenges, the company laid off staff in 2022 and 2023.
Last year, Nuro shifted to licensing its autonomous tech, dropping its delivery bots to focus on automakers and mobility providers. This move, the company said, extended its financial runway from 1.5 to 3.5 years.
Still, Nuro needed a major licensing deal to prove the strategy was working. According to Ferguson, the Uber partnership—and others reportedly in development—shows that the pivot is beginning to pay off.
Read the original article on: Techcrunch
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