Uber Technologies and General Motors’ Cruise have formed a multi-year partnership aimed at offering driverless rides to Uber users starting next year. This collaboration represents a critical step for Cruise, which has been working to revive its robotaxi operations following a serious incident in October 2023.
The incident involved a Cruise autonomous vehicle dragging a pedestrian in San Francisco after she was initially struck by another car driven by a human. The accident triggered investigations by state and federal regulators, leading to significant changes within Cruise, including the departure of CEO and co-founder Kyle Vogt and a wave of layoffs.
The leaders of both companies, Cruise CEO Marc Whitten and Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi, have expressed strong support for the partnership, emphasizing the potential of autonomous vehicles to transform urban transportation safely. In their joint press release, they highlighted their belief in the benefits of driverless technology and their commitment to bringing these advancements to more people.
Despite the challenges Cruise has faced, the company remains determined to push forward with its autonomous vehicle program, although specific details about the partnership’s terms and the timeline for the relaunch have not been disclosed.
This partnership marks a continuation of Uber’s evolving strategy in the autonomous vehicle space. After abandoning its own self-driving car development following a fatal accident in 2018, Uber has shifted its focus to collaborating with existing autonomous vehicle developers.
For example, Uber has partnered with Google-owned Waymo to provide driverless rides and deliveries in Arizona. This new collaboration with Cruise aligns with Uber’s broader goal of integrating autonomous vehicles into its network, which CEO Dara Khosrowshahi believes will lead to higher utilization rates compared to AVs operating independently.
During a recent earnings call, Khosrowshahi addressed questions about how the rise of robotaxis might affect Uber’s business in the long term. He predicted that the transition to widespread use of autonomous vehicles would be gradual, with human-driven and autonomous vehicles coexisting for a significant period.
Khosrowshahi also noted that the market for autonomous vehicles is unlikely to be dominated by a single player, suggesting that Uber’s strategy of forming partnerships with multiple AV companies could be beneficial.
While Cruise works on relaunching its service, Waymo, a major competitor, has already made substantial inroads in the robotaxi market. Waymo currently delivers 100,000 paid rides per week in cities like San Francisco, Phoenix, and Los Angeles and plans to expand further.
Although GM previously invested in Lyft with the intention of developing autonomous vehicles together, it ultimately chose to focus on its own ventures through Cruise. As Cruise continues its testing in cities such as Phoenix, Dallas, and Houston, the company remains committed to establishing its driverless ride-hailing service in partnership with Uber.
