Uber is pursuing a legislative strategy designed to prevent autonomous vehicle companies like Waymo from operating independent robotaxi services, instead funneling them onto Uber's platform where it maintains control over the market. According to documents reviewed by WIRED and obtained through public records requests, Uber's lobbyists are actively working to embed this business model into state law across the country.

What Is Uber's Robotaxi Strategy?

A decade ago, Uber's then-CEO Travis Kalanick viewed autonomous vehicles as an existential threat to the ride-hailing company. "What would happen if we weren't a part of that future? If we weren't part of the autonomy thing? Then the future passes us by," Kalanick told Business Insider at the time. Rather than build and operate its own self-driving cars, Uber has since pivoted to a different approach: becoming the platform where all robotaxi operators, regardless of who they are, can connect with riders.

Current CEO Dara Khosrowshahi outlined this vision to investors in 2024, stating, "We think there are going to be many AV players around the world, and we want to be the go-to commercial platform for all of them". To that end, Uber has signed agreements with more than 25 major robotaxi operators. Driverless vehicles from Waymo, Nuro, Baidu, and Volkswagen's MOIA are either already available or soon to be available on the Uber app in several global cities.

Dara Khosrowshahi

How Is Uber Using Legislation to Protect Its Market Position?

Rather than compete on service quality or innovation, Uber is now using the legislative process to make it nearly impossible for autonomous vehicle developers to operate independently. According to WIRED's investigation, Uber's representatives have pressed lawmakers to deploy autonomous vehicles on what the company calls "hybrid networks," where human drivers work alongside robots as the new technology grows.

The most aggressive example comes from New Jersey, where an Uber lobbyist circulated legislative language that would require any platform offering driverless ride-hailing services to have human drivers serve at least 85% of its rides for a three-year period. This requirement would effectively prevent self-driving vehicle developers, including Waymo, Zoox, and Tesla, from operating their own ride-hail apps in the state. Instead, it would force them onto another ride-hail platform if they hope to enter the market, limiting competition for Uber, the country's dominant ride-hailing leader.

Steps Uber Is Taking to Entrench Its Market Position

• Platform Consolidation: Signing agreements with 25+ robotaxi operators to ensure they operate through Uber's app rather than launching competing services.
• Legislative Lobbying: Pressing lawmakers in multiple states to pass laws requiring "hybrid networks" where human drivers dominate the initial rollout of autonomous services.
• Regulatory Barriers: Circulating specific legislative language, such as New Jersey's proposed 85% human-driver requirement, that would make independent robotaxi operations commercially unviable.

The strategy is remarkably similar to blocking electric vehicle adoption by requiring all EVs to have a petrol engine as backup, according to analysis of Uber's approach. It uses regulatory requirements to prevent a new technology from competing on its own merits.

Why Does This Matter for the Robotaxi Industry?

Waymo and other autonomous vehicle developers have invested billions in building self-driving technology. If they cannot operate their own apps and must instead pay Uber a commission to reach customers, it fundamentally changes the economics of their business. Uber would become a gatekeeper, controlling which robotaxi services consumers can access and taking a cut of every ride, regardless of who built the vehicle or the autonomous system.

This approach also slows the adoption of fully autonomous vehicles. By requiring human drivers to handle 85% of rides in the early years, legislation like New Jersey's proposal would delay the transition to driverless fleets and preserve demand for human drivers longer, protecting Uber's existing driver network and revenue model.

Uber's flexibility on principles is notable. The company has repeatedly adjusted its stated values and business strategies when doing so served its financial interests. In this case, the company that once saw autonomous vehicles as an existential threat is now using its market dominance to ensure that when autonomous vehicles do arrive, Uber controls the platform through which they operate.