Today’s show:
Jason and Alex are joined by Nuro’s Dave Ferguson to unpack the Lucid–Uber–Nuro deal aiming to launch fully driverless Gravity SUVs on Uber by 2026. They dig into why off-the-shelf sensors and Nvidia’s Thor chip drive costs down, how mapping 150 cities improves safety, and why lidar still matters for night and edge cases. Plus: lessons from Cruise’s collapse, how regulators think about safety multiples, and why autonomy could finally make rides cheaper than owning a car.
Timestamps:
(00:00) Show intro…
(06:23) Uber x Lucid x Nuro: why this 2026 robotaxi deal matters
(09:57) Lemon.io - Get 15% off your first 4 weeks of developer time at https://Lemon.io/twist
(11:13) What the self-driving “cost stack” really looks like in 2025
(14:08) Road-mapping at scale: Nuro’s 150-city data collection push
(15:38) Can AVs handle snow & rain? Weather rollout and Uber Black positioning
(20:05) Northwest Registered Agent - Form your entire business identity in just 10 clicks and 10 minutes. Get more privacy, more options, and more done—visit https://www.northwestregisteredagent.com/twist today!
(21:07) Show Continues…
(24:24) Probabilistic vs. deterministic driving models — and the DARPA roots
(30:08) Stripe Startups - Stripe Startups offers early-stage, venture-backed startups access to Stripe fee credits and more. Apply today on stripe.com/startups.
(31:08) Show Continues…
(35:38) Post-Cruise reality check: transparency, regulators & trust
Subscribe to the TWiST500 newsletter: https://ticker.thisweekinstartups.com
Check out the TWIST500: https://www.twist500.com
Subscribe to This Week in Startups on Apple: https://rb.gy/v19fcp
Follow Lon:
X: https://x.com/lons
Follow Alex:
X: https://x.com/alex
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexwilhelm
Follow Jason:
X: https://twitter.com/Jason
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasoncalacanis
Thank you to our partners:
(09:57) Lemon.io - Get 15% off your first 4 weeks of developer time at https://Lemon.io/twist
(20:05) Northwest Registered Agent - Form your entire business identity in just 10 clicks and 10 minutes. Get more privacy, more options, and more done—visit https://www.northwestregisteredagent.com/twist today!
(30:08) Stripe Startups - Stripe Startups offers early-stage, venture-backed startups access to Stripe fee credits and more. Apply today on stripe.com/startups.
Great TWIST interviews: Will Guidara, Eoghan McCabe, Steve Huffman, Brian Chesky, Bob Moesta, Aaron Levie, Sophia Amoruso, Reid Hoffman, Frank Slootman, Billy McFarland
Check out Jason’s suite of newsletters: https://substack.com/@calacanis
Follow TWiST:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/TWiStartups
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/thisweekin
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thisweekinstartups
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thisweekinstartups
Substack: https://twistartups.substack.com
Subscribe to the Founder University Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@founderuniversity1916
