Uber said it plans to launch its own robo-taxi service in San Francisco by the end of 2026, pitting itself against Google’s Waymo — the biggest force in the autonomous transportation space in the U.S. so far.
The announcement came a day after Uber and Nvidia unveiled their partnership to deploy 100,000 robo-taxi vehicles by 2027.
“The future is coming,” Uber said in a post on its X platform, adding that it is already testing more than 100 Lucid autonomous vehicles that will form the core of the program.
For now, Uber users can hail robo-taxis in some US cities via Waymo’s fleet — a sign of the technology’s rapid integration into existing transportation fleets.
AI and robo-taxis: Nvidia’s role
Nvidia, a leader in artificial intelligence chips, announced partnerships with Stellantis, Lucid and Mercedes-Benz to develop 100,000 robo-taxis over the next two years.
The company aims to be the technological “brain” of autonomous driving systems, which rely on AI and ultra-fast connectivity to safely respond to road conditions.
Waymo, Baidu and the global road race
Waymo is already established in San Francisco, where its robo-taxis have been operating since 2021 and have even become… a tourist attraction. Its fleet in the region is estimated to exceed 800 vehicles, and the company plans to expand to London in 2026 — its first presence in Europe.
Meanwhile, China’s Baidu has announced plans to launch robo-taxis through its Lyft platform in Germany and the UK in 2026, subject to regulatory approvals. The company has also signed a partnership agreement with Uber to develop services in markets in Asia and the Middle East.
Competition is heating up
With tech and automotive giants entering the space, the race for self-driving taxi dominance is taking on a global dimension.
San Francisco — a hotbed of innovation — is once again set to become ground zero for a technological revolution that promises to fundamentally change the way we get around.
