Uber and Cruise join forces for autonomous ride-sharing

Uber is set to host Cruise self-driving robotaxis on its platform starting in 2025.

Driving the news: A small percentage of Uber users will soon be able to experience autonomous ride-sharing, although access will heavily depend on where they live.

• According to the company, Cruise services will only be available in a single U.S. market next year. The brand has yet to identify where that is.

• Uber used to run its own self-driving unit only to exit the business in 2020 to focus on its other offerings.

• But earlier this month, Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi said the company’s platform could offer value to other “AV players looking to deploy their technology at scale.”

Big picture: General Motors’ Cruise is still picking itself back up after one of its vehicles struck and dragged a pedestrian in California late last year.

• Following the incident, state officials quickly suspended the company’s permission to operate driverless vehicles, accusing the brand of failing to communicate full details of the crash to authorities as required.

• The ensuing investigation from GM resulted in the resignation of multiple leaders at Cruise. A federal probe into unexpected braking ended this August, resulting in a recall of 1,194 robotaxis.

• The company resumed partial operations earlier this year. A Bloomberg report says it will offer fully autonomous rides once again starting in early 2025.

Bottom line: The amount of investment needed to make self-driving vehicles succeed is overwhelming, which is why partnerships between brands make a lot of sense. As time goes on, it’s possible other platforms will collaborate to make the technology more accessible.

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