Autonomous electric vehicles powered by Uber, Lucid, and Nuro to hit the roads in large numbers starting from 2026, with a target of 20,000 deployments.
**Headline:** Uber, Lucid, and Nuro Partner to Develop Premium Autonomous Ride-Hailing Service
Uber, Lucid Motors, and autonomous driving technology company Nuro have announced a strategic partnership to develop and deploy a next-generation autonomous ride-hailing (robotaxi) service. This collaboration leverages Lucid's electric vehicle manufacturing expertise, Nuro's advanced self-driving technology, and Uber's global ride-hailing network.
**Details of the Autonomous Ride-Hailing Service**
The partnership will see Lucid adapting its advanced Gravity SUV to integrate Nuro's Driver™ autonomous vehicle technology. The Gravity, known for its range, spacious interior, and "fully redundant zonal architecture," is particularly suitable for autonomous ridesharing. Uber and its partners aim to launch this robotaxi service in a major U.S. city later in 2026, with plans to deploy over 20,000 of these vehicles across dozens of global markets over six years.
The service is designed specifically for the Uber platform, ensuring a seamless integration into Uber’s existing app and customer experience. The fleet will be owned and operated either by Uber directly or through affiliated fleet operators. Uber is making a multi-hundred-million dollar investment in both Lucid and Nuro, with a $300 million commitment to Lucid to upgrade its assembly line specifically for integrating Nuro’s hardware into Gravity vehicles.
The integrated Lucid-Nuro vehicles will benefit from both Lucid’s vehicle architecture and Nuro’s mature autonomous vehicle stack. The robotaxis will use Nuro's Level 4 autonomy system, which allows for fully driverless operation within defined geographic areas.
**Business Model and Investment**
The robotaxis will be purchased and operated either by Uber or third-party partners, with the goal of making autonomous ride-hailing available to millions of riders worldwide via the Uber app. The premium pricing of the service is due to the Gravity's size and features.
**Looking Ahead**
This partnership is part of Uber’s broader strategy to lead the commercialization of robotaxis, complementing existing partnerships with companies like Waymo, Volkswagen Group of America, and Baidu. Further details about the global rollout of the robotaxi service are expected in the coming months.
Uber's CEO Dara Khosrowshahi emphasized the potential of autonomous vehicles to improve ride-hailing accessibility over time. Lucid's interim CEO Marc Winterhoff highlighted how the investment validates Lucid's platform for AVs and ridesharing. Nuro's CEO Jiajun Zhu focused on the scalability and real-world application of Nuro’s technology, enabled by Lucid’s vehicles and Uber’s platform.
This partnership is a significant step toward mass-market autonomous ride-hailing, bringing together vehicle manufacturing, AV tech, and global ride-hailing scale in a single ecosystem.
- The autonomous ride-hailing service that Uber, Lucid Motors, and Nuro are developing will leverage Lucid's expertise in electric vehicle manufacturing and Nuro's advanced self-driving technology.
- Uber plans to launch this premium autonomous ride-hailing service, named robotaxi, in a major U.S. city later in 2026, with goals to deploy over 20,000 of these vehicles across dozens of global markets over six years.
- Uber is making a significant investment in both Lucid and Nuro, with a $300 million commitment to Lucid to upgrade its assembly line specifically for integrating Nuro’s hardware into Gravity vehicles.
- The integrated Lucid-Nuro vehicles will use Nuro's Level 4 autonomy system, enabling fully driverless operation within defined geographic areas.
- As part of Uber's broader strategy, this partnership aims to lead the commercialization of robotaxis, complementing existing partnerships with companies like Waymo, Volkswagen Group of America, and Baidu.
