Is Waymo Moving Away from Robotaxis?
July 6, 2025
This Week in The Autonomy Economy is presented by Koop, a specialist insurance provider focused on robotics and autonomous vehicles.
This Week in the Autonomy Economy, America celebrated its 249th birthday, Moove continues to make big moves as Waymo appears to be moving away from the robotaxi business in the traditional sense.
Yes, you read that right. Waymo’s business model is changing, and we’ve been studying the tea leaves and connecting the dots. The days of Waymo owning and operating a robotaxi fleet are coming to an end, as all signs point to a shift towards a high-margin licensing business.
Waymo built the robotaxi business to prove the technology works, now, they’re turning it into a scalable autonomous driving licensing business. On this week’s episode of Autonomy Markets, Grayson Brulte and Walter Piecyk discussed Waymo’s evolving strategy and what impact it will have on the market.
As Waymo transitions from an asset-heavy to an asset-light model, we believe that at some point in the future, Uber will move in the opposite direction and own robotaxi assets. Whether those assets will reside on Uber’s balance sheet or a strategic partner such as Moove (Uber reportedly owns 10%), Uber is about to make a series of moves that could reshape the entire robotaxi landscape.
If the market evolves as we expect, Uber could ultimately become the largest owner and operator of robotaxis in the world. In our view, Dara Khosrowshahi and the Uber team are only in the third inning of where they are ultimately headed in autonomy.
The big prize? Buying Waymo’s robotaxi business. If that happens, and we believe it’s a very real possibility, Uber will finally get the recognition they deserve as a major player in the autonomous vehicle industry.
In last week’s poll, where we asked Is Uber Getting Credit for Their Autonomy Strategy? the results were tied. Reinforcing our belief that the market is clearly divided on Uber’s approach, but over time, that will change as Uber’s autonomy strategy becomes clearer.
This week, we are taking a field trip and hitting the road. Next week, we’ll be back with special editions of This Week in the Autonomy Economy and Autonomy Markets.
Uber is currently ranked #1 with a bullish outlook on the AUTONOMY LEADERBOARD in the software platforms category.
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What’s Moving the Markets
Mooving Towards an Autonomous Vehicle REIT
Bloomberg is reporting that Moove is in the process of raising $1.2 billion in debt to finance the purchase of Waymo autonomous vehicles. At an estimated cost of $200,000 per vehicle, as many as 6,000 Waymo vehicles could soon end up on Moove’s balance sheet.
The question now becomes, what is the motivation behind this purchase? Will these Moove-owned vehicles first appear in Miami, which is slated to be Waymo’s initial Moove market when it comes online in 2026?
The next question is whether this marks a broader shift in Waymo’s business model —from owning and operating a robotaxi fleet to licensing the Waymo Driver.
If that is indeed the plan, what happens when an Apollo, Blackstone, or KKR decides to enter the market and set up an Autonomous Vehicle REIT (AV REIT)? Will Moove compete with these private equity titans, or will they ultimately fund Moove’s aggressive expansion?
Or as the market matures, do they partner to launch and float an Autonomous Vehicle REIT (AV REIT)? Is there even investor appetite for an AV REIT? We believe there is, and this funding round, reported to be oversubscribed is a clear indicator that demand for this type of investment product exists in the market today.
Adding another layer to this, it has been widely reported that Uber owns 10% of Moove. Could Uber look to increase its stake and use Moove as a vehicle to own a robotaxi fleet operating exclusively on the Uber network?
Could Moove also be the partner that owns and operates the Wayve fleet that is expected to launch as a trial in London on the Uber network in 2026? There is clearly something brewing here.
While we don’t yet know all the details of the financing round yet, it appears Uber is preparing for something big that will enable the company to scale robotaxis globally.
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Piquing Our Interest
Uber Advocates for Autonomous Vehicle Regulations in Australia During a panel discussion with Sky News Australia, Uber Eats ANZ Managing Director Ed Kitchen called on the Albanese government to establish a regulatory framework for autonomous vehicles.
MOIA Opens Autonomous Ridepooling Waitlist in Hamburg MOIA, owned by VW, has opened the waitlist for their autonomous ridepooling service in Hamburg, Germany, with a few interesting caveats. First, rides must be shared. Second, pick-up and drop-offs are limited to pre-determined locations due to German regulations. Finally, the service operates only between 2 p.m. and 9 p.m.
China Ramps up Scrutiny of SAE Level 3 Vehicles The Chinese Communist Party has intensified its scrutiny of semi-autonomous vehicles (SAE Level 3) and how they are marketed to the public in China.
📰 Before these stories were featured here, they were available on X. Follow @RoadToAutonomy today to stay up-to-date on the latest news and developments shaping the autonomy economy.
Social Buzz
Pony.AI Has Started Testing in Luxembourg
Pony.AI has begun testing autonomous vehicles with safety drivers in Luxembourg in partnership with Emile Weber, a local mobility solutions provider. While there is no timeline yet for the commercialization of a robotaxi service, the move is a clear indicator of Pony.AI’s continued expansion into Europe.
Our take: If and when Pony.AI decides to commercialize the Luxembourg market, will it be with Uber as part of their strategic partnership and Webtaxi? After all, Emile Weber owns Webtaxi, which already has a partnership with Uber.
Latest The Road to Autonomy Podcast
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Latest Autonomy Markets Podcast
Waymo’s Moove Away from Fleet Ownership, Ford Makes Wayve’s on LiDAR
This week on Autonomy Markets, Grayson Brulte and Walter Piecyk discuss Waymo’s gradual move away from owning and operate a fleet of robotaxis, Moove’s growing fleet ownership ambitions and Ford’s LiDAR demands.
Watch on YouTube | Spotify | X
Listen on Apple Podcasts
July 5, 2025
