Uber commits $10bn to robotaxis in a strategy U-turn
Summary
Uber is abandoning its 'asset-light' gig-economy model and committing over $10bn — more than $2.5bn in equity stakes and $7.5bn in vehicle purchases — to buy self-driving cars and take positions in their makers. It has announced partnerships with 12+ providers including Baidu, Rivian, Lucid, Waabi and Zoox, and plans to launch robotaxi services in at least 15 cities in 2026. Its shares are down 23% over six months as Waymo, Tesla and Zoox threaten to bypass the platform.
Delfineo's Take
The real bet is on 'financialisation': Uber plans to have fleet managers, institutional investors and private credit ultimately own and finance the robotaxis — turning self-driving fleets into a tradable asset class, like data centres. If that works, Uber stays the consumer gateway without bearing the full capital cost. If it doesn't, Uber becomes a structurally capital-intensive business competing against three trillion-dollar balance sheets (Alphabet, Tesla, Amazon). Watch the take rate — already down from 30% to under 20% net of insurance in the US.