Lucid, Nuro and Uber have announced plans to launch more than 20,000 robotaxis in cities around the world.
Uber aims to deploy 20,000 or more Lucid vehicles equipped with the Nuro Driver over six years in dozens of markets around the world, with the first launch in a major US city next year.
Expected to first launch later next year in a major US city, the new robotaxi service combines the industry-leading software-defined vehicle architecture of the Lucid Gravity, the scalability and capability Nuro Driver Level 4 autonomy system, and Uber’s vast global network and dynamic fleet management.
Lucid and Uber to launch robotaxis worldwide
Shares in Saudi-backed Lucid surged more than 56 per cent during trading, following reports of a $300m investment from Uber.
The vehicles will be owned and operated by Uber or its third-party fleet partners and made available to riders exclusively via the Uber platform.
The first Lucid-Nuro robotaxi prototype is already operating autonomously on a closed circuit at Nuro’s Las Vegas proving grounds.
As part of a deepening relationship with each partner, Uber plans to make multi-hundred-million dollar investments in both Nuro and Lucid.
Dara Khosrowshahi, CEO of Uber, said: “Autonomous vehicles have enormous potential to transform our cities for the better. We’re thrilled to partner with Nuro and Lucid on this new robotaxi program, purpose-built just for the Uber platform, to safely bring the magic of autonomous driving to more people across the world.”
Marc Winterhoff, Interim CEO at Lucid, said: “This investment from Uber further validates Lucid’s fully redundant zonal architecture and highly capable platform as ideal for autonomous vehicles, and our industry-leading range and spacious well-appointed interiors, as ideal for ridesharing.
“This is the start of our path to extend our innovation and technology leadership into this multi-trillion-dollar market.”
Jiajun Zhu, Co-Founder and CEO at Nuro, said: “We believe this partnership will demonstrate what’s possible when proven AV technology meets real-world scale. Nuro has spent nearly a decade building an AI-first autonomy system that’s safe, scalable, and vehicle-agnostic, proven through five years of driverless deployments across multiple US cities and states.
“By combining our self-driving technology with Lucid’s advanced vehicle architecture and Uber’s global platform, we’re proud to enable a robotaxi service designed to reach millions of people around the world.”
The robotaxi will use Lucid Gravity’s advanced technology platform, redundant electrical and controls architectures, and long range, which together make it an ideal fit for use in a scalable robotaxi offering.
Autonomy is enabled by the Nuro Driver—Nuro’s Level 4 self-driving system that combines automotive-grade hardware and AI-powered self-driving software designed for reliability and cost-efficiency at scale.
The necessary hardware will be integrated seamlessly into the Lucid Gravity on the car manufacturer’s assembly line and will subsequently receive Nuro’s software when the vehicle is commissioned by Uber.
With operations in 70 countries and an average of 34m trips per day, Uber’s platform has the scale necessary to make the benefits of self-driving vehicles accessible and beneficial to people everywhere.
“The longer 450-mile EPA estimated range of the Lucid Gravity means less frequent downtime for charging, minimizing costs and maximizing vehicle availability.
The Nuro Driver, which will enable the Gravity to operate at Level 4 autonomy, integrates an end-to-end AI model with safeguards for precision and reliability.
This enables rapid adaptation to new environments, functions, and vehicle platforms – reducing deployment timelines.
