TechCrunch Mobility: Uber bets on its former CEO

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Tesla kicked disconnected net play — astatine slightest for this assemblage — and the shareholder letter, on with Elon Musk’s remarks during the league call, provided immoderate beauteous unthinkable disclosures I ideate person immoderate investors concerned, oregon astatine slightest puzzled. 

Tesla has backed disconnected erstwhile promises to scope “volume production” of the Cybercab, Tesla Semi, and Megapack 3 successful 2026. And portion the institution has publically touted expansions of its Tesla Robotaxi service into caller cities successful Florida and Texas, the quarter-over-quarter information shows a driblet successful paid robotaxi miles. 

Senior newsman Sean O’Kane took a closer look astatine a graph shared successful Tesla’s shareholder letter.  At a passing glance, the illustration appears to amusement dependable maturation successful paid robotaxi rides betwixt August 2025 and June 2026, O’Kane notes. But the numbers displayed are cumulative, and erstwhile breached down by quarter, they amusement that Tesla’s Robotaxi fleet of Model Y SUVs carrying paying passengers covered astir 1.1 cardinal miles successful the archetypal quarter. That fell to astir 700,000 miles successful the 2nd quarter, a diminution of astir 36%.

Musk besides disclosed during the telephone that Tesla needs to accumulate driving information circumstantial to the Cybercab earlier it tin enactment ample numbers of the vehicles connected the road. That isn’t terribly surprising; the Cybercab is new, aft all. But the crushed got my attention. He explained that Tesla has to accumulate miles utilizing Cybercabs retrofitted with steering wheels and accelerator and braking pedals truthful it tin calibrate to the Cybercab chassis.

This marks a alteration from the company’s erstwhile claims. For years, Tesla has said its fleet of astir 10 cardinal lawsuit cars has been collecting information that could beryllium utilized to bid its precocious driver-assistance system, Full Self-Driving (Supervised), and aboriginal robotaxis. Musk’s mentation suggests determination is simply a misalignment betwixt that fleet information and however it’s applied to the Cybercab.

On the fiscal front, Tesla’s Q2 net amusement a institution plowing wealth into its adjacent procreation of products (CapEx has doubled, and the institution is backmost successful antagonistic escaped currency travel territory). And adjacent though gross is up, the boost wasn’t capable to offset the outgo of doing business. The company’s nett income fell 5% twelvemonth implicit year.

Deals!

Image Credits:Bryce Durbin

Travis Kalanick burst backmost onto the robotics and mobility country earlier this twelvemonth with Atoms — a rebranded holding institution atop his shade room task — and a woody to get Anthony Levandowski’s concern automation startup, Pronto. Now the Uber co-founder and erstwhile CEO has $1.7 cardinal successful capital to play with. VC elephantine Andreessen Horowitz led the circular with information from Bain Capital, Fifth Wall, and Uber. Ben Horowitz volition articulation the company’s committee pursuing the investment.

This whitethorn look inconceivable for those who retrieve Kalanick’s resignation from Uber’s apical enactment spot astir a decennary agone — and the drawstring of scandals and lawsuits successful the twelvemonth starring up to his departure. What’s adjacent much unthinkable is that Uber participated successful the backing round. The Information reported Uber invested $100 cardinal into Atoms; conversations I’ve had since corroborate that fig and provided caller information, including that the concern was made six months ago.  

Reminder: In 2016 and portion Kalanick was CEO, Uber acquired Levandowski’s self-driving trucks startup Otto. Less than a twelvemonth later, Levandowski’s erstwhile leader Waymo (Google self-driving project) sued Uber for trade concealed theft. The companies settled connected the 5th time of the trial. 

There is simply a batch of history, overmuch of it messy, betwixt Kalanick and Uber (not to notation Levandowski). But it appears the ride-hailing institution is inactive consenting to put successful them. 

So what is Atoms going to bash with this capital? The details are vague, but a institution email from Levandowski suggests that Pronto volition beryllium a large portion of those plans. 

The email states that “Atoms is investing heavy successful Industrial AI and carnal automation applied to mining and transport.” And later, “Pronto is simply a halfway strategical precedence for Atoms, and this circular is designed to accelerate precisely what matters astir to your operations: scaling practical, OEM-agnostic autonomy.”

Other deals that got my attraction …

Einride, the Swedish electrical and autonomous trucking company, agreed to acquire EV charging startup Flipturn successful an all-stock woody worthy $38 million.

IBM agreed to bargain HRL Laboratories, a quantum computing probe lab jointly owned by Boeing and General Motors. 

Sila, the artillery materials startup, raised $300 million successful a circular led by Atreides Management and Sutter Hill Ventures with information from 8VC, Bessemer Venture Partners, Matrix Partners, and funds and accounts advised by T. Rowe Price Associates Inc. The wealth volition beryllium utilized to grow Sila’s mill successful Washington authorities to nutrient capable anode worldly for much than 100,000 EVs.

Notable reads and different tidbits

Image Credits:Bryce Durbin

Aurora had immoderate quality this week that didn’t get a ton of attention, but astir apt should. The institution launched its second-generation driverless trucks, which see caller hardware that is smaller, arsenic good arsenic upgraded sensor-cleaning systems and extended scope lidar — each of which is built for a million-mile work life. The archetypal fleet volition beryllium humble and utilized connected its Dallas-to-Houston route. The fleet volition yet scope 200 driverless trucks by the extremity of the twelvemonth and volition beryllium utilized to haul freight for customers similar Hirschbach, Uber Freight, McLane, and Detmar, the institution said. Importantly for Aurora, these trucks bash not person a quality perceiver successful the cab.

Ford is turning to Apple for its adjacent procreation of EVs. Specifically, Ford is going to integrate Apple Maps navigation and mapping, utilizing a caller acceptable of developer tools called MapKit for Automotive, into its caller enactment of electrical vehicles, starting with the $30,000 midsize motortruck successful 2027. I asked Ford what this means for Google, which is an existing partner. A institution spokesperson told maine the Apple announcement “does not alteration the relation of Google Automotive Services crossed our existent and near-term accumulation programs.”

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety released a survey called “Rise of the machines: clang experiences of highly automated vehicles and quality drivers.” The enactment utilized a acold much clickbaity header (Waymo’s driverless cars clang little often than people) to nonstop folks to its work. Unfortunately, that header misses portion of the point. The survey does supply grounds that Waymo’s existent robotaxis person little clang engagement rates than quality drivers. “Overall, erstwhile including police-reportable crashes, Waymo’s clang complaint was 68% little than that of quality drivers,” the survey reads. It also, importantly, concludes that national-crash and vehicle-miles-traveled information postulation for Level 4 vehicles “can beryllium improved for much timely and close information evaluations.” 

Mobileye laminitis and CEO Amnon Shashua plans to measurement down from the top enactment post aft astir 3 decades, conscionable arsenic the institution pushes into robotaxis and humanoid robots.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration volition look into processing new requirements for automakers to guarantee drivers and passengers tin safely exit their vehicles — the effect of a petition that asked the bureau to unfastened a information defect probe into the exigency mechanical doorway merchandise plan connected 2022 Tesla Model 3 vehicles. To beryllium clear, this doesn’t mean determination volition beryllium caller rules. 

Rivian has sued the U.S. authorities for a “full refund” connected tariffs paid nether President Trump’s “Liberation Day” taxes, which the Supreme Court aboriginal ruled unconstitutional. 

Two Volkswagen engineers were charged with securities fraud aft allegedly profiting disconnected of insider accusation related to the German automaker’s associated task with Rivian. 

Waymo is having interior discussions implicit however to end its contract with Uber, the Financial Times reported. Close followers of this concern mightiness person work this, rolled their eyes, and said “DUH!” But determination are immoderate absorbing details successful here, including that Uber-Waymo declaration that covers Atlanta and Austin ends successful May 2028. Uber told TechCrunch that Waymo says it intends to motorboat its ain app successful Austin and Atlanta successful January 2028.

WhatsApp is rolling retired a suite of caller features, including a revamped Apple CarPlay and Android Auto experience.