Uber's new deals aim to catch up in self-driving car tech

Uber launched a driverless car project in early 2015 under Travis Kalanick and competed with Waymo and Tesla. After a test vehicle in Arizona struck and killed a pedestrian in 2018, CEO Dara Khosrowshahi cancelled the program and sold off parts as the company prepared for an IPO in 2019.

Following the cancellation, Uber's US market share rose while Lyft struggled, and the company reached healthier profitability with a stronger stock. Meanwhile Waymo and Tesla kept advancing autonomous technology; AVs have improved markedly, Waymo now competes with Uber's human-driven network in San Francisco, and the author has used Tesla's full self-driving software.

Investors have recently punished Uber's stock over concerns it is lagging as Tesla and Waymo build their own autonomous ride services. Asked whether Uber should have stayed in AVs, Evercore ISI analyst Mark Mahaney said, "Not a bad interpretation.

United States, Arizona, San Francisco

uber, waymo, tesla, self-driving, autonomous vehicles, driverless cars, dara khosrowshahi, travis kalanick, lyft, ipo