The Road to Autonomy Episode 279 | Autonomy Markets: Waymo’s Missing Tier, Uber and Lyft Keep Rides Moving and Hyundai’s Robotaxi Push
This week on Autonomy Markets, Grayson Brulte and Walter Piecyk discus Waymo’s launch in Austin, Alphabet’s strong commitment to Waymo and Hyundai’s robotaxi ambitions.
On March 5, Waymo launched exclusively on the Uber app in Austin. However, riders cannot guarantee a Waymo vehicle, as there is no dedicated Waymo tier in the app. This lack of certainty could dilute the premium Waymo experience, as users do not know what type of vehicle they will be paired with when ordering a ride.
As Waymo scales its operations globally, Hyundai is emerging as a major player in the robotaxi market. This week, Avride announced a partnership with Hyundai to develop a fully integrated robotaxi, with the first vehicles set to enter service this year in Dallas.
Texas is emerging hub for autonomy for both robotaxis and autonomous trucks. Next month, Aurora will begin commercial driver-out operations from Dallas, followed by Bot Auto in Houston later this year. Autonomy is now becoming a business.
Episode Chapters
0:00 Waymo Experience on Uber
7:01 Uber’s Autonomous Vehicle Fleet Management Strategy
9:29 Lyft’s Flexdrive
12:17 Waymo’s Jaguar I-PACE Fleet
14:46 Waymo Zeekr Robotaxi
16:51 Alphabet’s Commitment to Waymo
20:26 Waymo’s Pending Silver Lake / Los Feliz LA Expansion
22:02 Autonomy Markets Nicknames
23:16 Waymo’s Mysterious San Francisco X Post
24:24 Walt’s Waymo Analysis
25:46 Avride / Hyundai Robotaxi Partnership
29:43 Bot Auto‘s Driver-Out Plans
33:54 Wayve Expands to Germany
35:56 Unforced Error of The Week
38:20 Next Week
Recorded on Friday, March 7, 2025
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