New York, February 23, 2026, 15:28 ET — Regular session.
- Uber dropped roughly 4.7% in the afternoon session, with major U.S. stocks sliding too.
- Uber has launched “Uber Autonomous Solutions,” targeting partnerships with robotaxi operators.
- Mark the calendar for May 6—that’s when results are due.
Uber Technologies (UBER.N) dropped 4.7% to $70.39 in the afternoon session Monday, tracking losses across the broader market. Lyft (LYFT.O), its ride-hailing competitor, slid 5.2%. The S&P 500 ETF lost about 1.3%, and the Nasdaq-heavy QQQ shed 1.5%. Uber hit an intraday low of $70.30, a sharp move down from its $73.86 finish Friday.
Uber has rolled out Uber Autonomous Solutions, pitching a suite of services covering infrastructure, user experience, and fleet management for self-driving operations. CEO Dara Khosrowshahi called the pace of autonomy “quick,” but cautioned that real revenue is still further out, as the company aims to get AV teams using its backend tech. Autonomous rides are already available via Uber Reserve in Phoenix, with a joint autonomous launch with Volkswagen set for Los Angeles before year-end. Business Wire
Uber’s approach boils down to this: as vehicles ditch their drivers, the company aims to stick to the center of the ride. Rather than develop its own autonomous tech, Uber is focusing on logistics—matching riders, managing customer issues, and the nuts-and-bolts of fleet operations. According to The Verge, it’s a play to stay in the mix as robotaxi firms scale up and the market moves beyond human drivers.
The Financial Times says Sarfraz Maredia is heading up the new unit, rolling out offerings like insurance, roadside assistance, mapping and data collection, fleet financing, plus mission-control software. That last piece—“mission control”—is the live support network: when something goes wrong on the road, a human steps in. Financial Times
Uber shares slid as U.S. stocks retreated, shaken by renewed trade-policy jitters. A Supreme Court decision on tariffs, coupled with President Donald Trump’s fresh call for sweeping import duties, rattled investors. Gold—a defensive play—climbed. Software and financial names bore the brunt of the selling, according to Reuters.
The immediate issue for Uber is getting these autonomy efforts to cover their own costs, rather than slipping into money-losing territory. Investors aren’t showing much patience for ventures that hint at endless outlays—particularly with market jitters running high.
Uber earlier this month projected first-quarter profit would come in below expectations, feeling the pinch from both lower ride prices and increased taxes, despite a bump in trip numbers. The company also laid out plans to launch robotaxi services in as many as 15 cities worldwide by the end of 2026, targeting expansion of its autonomous offerings to places like Madrid, Hong Kong, Houston, and Zurich.
Uber has turned to external partners for its autonomous push, tapping developers like Alphabet’s Waymo and Baidu’s Apollo Go instead of relying solely on its own tech. On Feb. 10, Uber and Baidu announced plans to launch autonomous ride-hailing services in Dubai next month, aiming to bring fully driverless vehicles onto the Uber platform. Uber offloaded its self-driving division to Aurora back in 2020.
But autonomy remains bogged down by safety and regulatory headaches—one major incident, and deployment stalls fast. Say robotaxis do manage to expand: Uber might still run into sharper pricing pressure if large fleet operators hang onto more of the revenue or funnel passengers toward their own platforms. A weaker travel demand backdrop would only add to the strain.
Uber is set to report earnings on May 6, with traders zeroing in on new margin figures and any updates regarding its autonomous vehicle partnerships, per Yahoo Finance’s calendar.
