San Francisco, May 3, 2026, 14:04 PDT
- Uber is expanding its robotaxi operations, tapping Hertz’s Oro Mobility to oversee sections of its Lucid-Nuro vehicle fleet for paid ride services.
- The company’s technology chief also outlined broader ambitions — putting sensors in its cars to collect road data, which could then be fed to autonomous-vehicle firms.
- Just days ahead of Uber’s first-quarter earnings, the changes throw spending, margins, and deployment timing back into the spotlight.
Uber Technologies is looking beyond its traditional ride-hailing platform, having recently started expanding into fleet operations and incorporating road data as part of its robotaxi ambitions.
Chief Technology Officer Praveen Neppalli Naga is the latest voice from Uber pushing its ambitions further, saying the company hopes to start outfitting a portion of its human-driven fleet with sensors aimed at gathering real-world data for self-driving tech firms. That would build on AV Labs—the existing, smaller program running only purpose-built sensor cars. AV stands for autonomous vehicle.
This is key for Uber, which is now putting together the behind-the-scenes pieces for driverless rides as the robotaxi sector shifts out of testing and toward actual commercial operations. The nuts and bolts—training data, charging, repairs, depot staff—are where a pilot ends and a real citywide network begins.
Hertz’s Oro Mobility is set to handle everything from charging to repairs, cleaning, and depot staffing for Uber’s autonomous Lucid vehicles running Nuro tech, according to an April 30 announcement. The companies target a Bay Area launch later this year, with possible expansion eyed for 2027. Oro already manages driver-led fleet operations for Uber in Los Angeles and San Francisco, after testing the service in Atlanta.
Uber President and COO Andrew Macdonald, in a joint announcement with Hertz, called the partnership with Hertz’s Oro Mobility a step toward pushing more advanced autonomous tech onto the Uber platform. He described the aim as building out a “hybrid network”—mixing rides with human drivers and autonomous vehicles. Uber Investor Relations
“The bottleneck is data,” Naga told TechCrunch, summing up the core challenge for self-driving projects. Robotaxi makers want more real-world driving data to refine their models for unusual road scenarios, but that push runs up against concerns about sensors, data-sharing policies, and what drivers are willing to allow. TechCrunch
Uber’s spending plans for autonomous vehicles are drawing scrutiny from the market now. Last month, Reuters noted the Financial Times had reported Uber is on the hook for over $10 billion—aimed at snapping up thousands of self-driving cars and investing in makers. Reuters couldn’t verify those figures independently.
This strategy marks a break from Uber’s traditional asset-light playbook, where the company typically steered clear of owning the vehicles in its fleet. Driverless networks, by contrast, require depots, power hookups, service bays—plus a party responsible when something goes wrong and a vehicle isn’t running.
Rivals are moving fast. Back in March, Reuters flagged Alphabet’s Waymo as still holding the commercial robotaxi lead, while Tesla’s size and cash pile could be a game changer for the sector. Uber and Nvidia? They’ve mapped out a launch in Los Angeles and San Francisco for 2027, eyeing 28 cities by 2028.
Uber hasn’t put all its chips on one self-driving system, instead opting to ink deals with a range of partners. Back in March, Reuters tallied 25 autonomous-vehicle tech collaborators working with Uber, with the company already running robotaxi rides in Phoenix, Austin, Atlanta, and Dubai. The Zoox partnership is next up, aiming for a Las Vegas launch this summer, and then Los Angeles by mid-2027.
There’s a risk deployment could be pushed back. Naga highlighted unresolved state issues involving sensors and data sharing. Reuters has reported that the robotaxi deals cited by the FT hinge on partners reaching certain rollout targets; if regulators step in, if safety concerns crop up, or if demand from riders drops, the timeline could easily slip.
Uber is pushing to extend user engagement past just ride-hailing. According to Reuters, the company joined forces with Expedia last week, bringing hotel booking options—over 700,000 listings globally—into its app. Uber One counted 46 million members in the fourth quarter of 2025.
Uber finished Friday at $75.12, rising 0.7%. Hertz slipped 3.6% to close at $6.14, following a week where the fleet partnership had already triggered a reaction from investors.
Uber’s first-quarter update lands early Wednesday—5:00 a.m. Pacific, on the dot. Investors want specifics: what’s the split between immediate robotaxi spending and actual rides on the road?
