Uber is moving forward with ambitious plans for autonomous vehicles and is seeking strong financial backing to accelerate expansion. CEO Dara Khosrowshahi revealed that the company is in talks with banks and private investors to raise capital for its growing robotaxi business—just as Uber released a highly optimistic Q3 outlook.

🔹 Robotaxi Strategy: Partnerships and In-House Investment

Uber already operates robotaxis in Austin and Atlanta through a partnership with Waymo (Alphabet’s self-driving unit). In July, the company signed a $300 million deal with EV maker Lucid and autonomous tech startup Nuro to deploy over 20,000 autonomous vehicles over the next six years.

Khosrowshahi said Uber’s approach combines fixed payments to partners, revenue-sharing with fleet operators, and partial vehicle ownership using third-party autonomous driving software. Once Uber proves consistent revenue from robotaxis, it plans to open up to external funding.

“Once we demonstrate it’s generating revenue, the funding will come,” Khosrowshahi stated.

The company plans to allocate a small portion of its $7 billion annual cash flow to fund initial deployment and is open to selling minority stakes in its autonomous division to accelerate growth.

🔹 Fierce Competition from Tesla and Waymo

The race to dominate the robotaxi space is intensifying. Tesla launched its robotaxi service in Austin in June and expanded into the San Francisco Bay Area in July. Waymo already operates in over five major U.S. cities. Uber, however, reports no decline in demand in Austin or San Francisco due to Tesla’s entry.

🔹 $20 Billion Share Buyback Program Announced

Alongside its AV ambitions, Uber announced a new $20 billion share buyback program, following a previously approved $7 billion buyback from early 2024.

Much of Uber’s current optimism is driven by the success of Uber One, its $9.99/month subscription program. Membership grew 60% year-over-year in June to over 36 million users. These subscribers account for one-third of all bookings and generate three times more profit than single-service users.

🔹 Strong Growth and Q3 Forecast Exceeds Expectations

Uber now expects gross bookings for Q3 to range between $48.25 and $49.75 billion—well above Wall Street’s forecast of $47.3 billion. In Q2, bookings grew 18%, driven by a 24% surge in delivery and nearly 19% growth in mobility.

The rise in weekday commuting also contributed to Q2 growth. Uber noted that users of its $2.99/month “Price Lock Pass” completed six more rides per month on average. The program is now live in over 10 major cities in the U.S. and Brazil.

Uber posted Q2 earnings of $0.63 per share, up from $0.47 a year ago, in line with analysts’ expectations. Adjusted EBITDA guidance for the current quarter is between $2.19 and $2.29 billion, surpassing analysts’ average estimate of $2.22 billion.

🔹 Loyalty and Innovation as Uber’s Differentiators

Both Uber and rival Lyft face mounting pressure to innovate. Uber is betting on a combination of its high-margin loyalty program, sticky new services like Price Lock, and continued investment in robotaxis to stand out.

The company now holds over 20 strategic alliances in the autonomous driving space.

#Uber , #ROBOTAXI , #Tesla , #AI , #worldnews

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