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Last week, I wrote about Uber and Waymo and how their partnership appears to be deteriorating. I predicted the two companies would end up on opposing sides of autonomous vehicle policy. That wasn’t a guess.
For the past several weeks, I’ve been talking to sources and digging through correspondence Uber sent to the D.C. Council, which is evaluating a proposed bill that would allow autonomous vehicles to operate in Washington, D.C.
What I found: Uber and Waymo are already on opposite sides of the proposal, sparring behind the scenes and in public. Uber has made a particularly interesting argument in its effort to shape the rules that govern autonomous vehicles.
Uber, which opposes the D.C. bill, argues it would displace for-hire human drivers and hand Waymo a de facto monopoly. Instead, it has lobbied for a system that would require robotaxis to operate on a ride-hailing network alongside human drivers.
Insiders tell me the “hybrid” approach has little chance of becoming law. But if it did, it would leave AV developers like Waymo with two suboptimal choices: either put their robotaxis on ride-hailing apps like Uber or employ human drivers alongside fleets of robotaxis that took years and hundreds of millions of dollars to develop.
A D.C. Council hearing on Monday drew representatives from Lyft, Tesla, Uber, and Waymo, along with dozens of disability rights and accessibility advocates, local business and industry groups, highway safety organizations, government officials, labor unions, and think tanks.
My takeaway — based on the public testimony and the calls and texts I received afterward — is that Waymo is one of the few companies that generally likes the bill. Much of the rest of the industry does not.
Tesla’s senior policy adviser, India Herdman, echoed concerns I’ve heard from multiple AV developers, including objections to the 180-day, 250,000-mile mandatory testing requirement; the $1 million application fee; the $5 million permit fee; and the $0.15-per-mile tax. Tesla, along with other companies, argued that testing miles accumulated in other jurisdictions should count toward the mileage threshold.
Waymo, which has been testing its AVs with human safety operators in Washington, D.C., has already surpassed the 180-day and 250,000-mile requirements. That means if the bill passed as written today, Waymo would enter the market with at least a six-month head start.
Deals!
Uber is considered a ride-hailing and delivery giant. It is now cementing that status through a $14.8 billion deal to acquire Germany’s Delivery Hero.
If the deal closes — and it will absolutely take time to overcome the regulatory hurdles — Uber will get access to nearly 100 markets across Europe, the Middle East, Latin America, and Asia. The upshot: Uber’s delivery footprint will double.
Delivery Hero also made a separate agreement to sell its business in 14 markets, where Uber Eats is already operating, to New York-based investment firm SSW Partners for $1.6 billion.
Other deals that got my attention …
Self Inspection, a San Diego-based startup trying to disrupt the vehicle inspection process, raised $10 million in a round led by the family office of Sheryl Sandberg. Tire distributor U.S. AutoForce and automotive lender Westlake Financial made strategic investments. Early-stage funds Costanoa Ventures, Rebellion Ventures, and BrightCap Ventures also invested.
Senra, a startup modernizing how wire harnesses are made, raised $65 million in a Series B round co-led by Lowercarbon and Interlagos with participation from General Catalyst, Sequoia Capital, Andreessen Horowitz, and Founders Fund, among others.
Zepto, the Indian fast-delivery company, is seeking a valuation in an initial public offering well below its $7 billion peak, Bloomberg reported, citing anonymous sources.
Notable reads and other tidbits
Chip Motors, a Miami-based startup, revealed a low-speed small EV designed for short errands and families, and with some automated driving capabilities.
The Los Angeles Police Department is reportedly ending its deal with Flock Safety, a surveillance company that helps law enforcement track vehicles using thousands of its license plate cameras placed across the United States.
Lucid Motors is pushing back — and hard — on a report that claimed the EV maker was weighing whether to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. The company’s comms team, its CEO, and a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission all say the same thing: The rumors are false. The initial report sent the company’s stock down more than 50% on Tuesday, its biggest intra-day drop ever. The stock has since recovered and is now trading about 28% higher than it was prior to the big drop.
Lyft CEO David Risher says it’s the “Good Uber,” per Wired.
Manual, or standard, transmission vehicles are a dying breed, according to preliminary government data that shows just 0.6% of new vehicles made for the U.S. in 2025 had stick shifts, the Washington Post reported. I own two manual vehicles. Does that make me a driving unicorn?
The National Transportation Safety Board said the driver of a Tesla who crashed into a house in June had pressed the accelerator pedal to 100%, overriding the company’s Full Self-Driving (Supervised) software.
San Francisco mayor Daniel Lurie has urged state regulators to toughen rules on autonomous vehicles after Waymo robotaxis became immobile in heavy July 4 traffic, ran out of power, and blocked key streets, further compounding the gridlock. In a letter (parts of which are excerpted here) Lurie outlined four core requirements he would like to see enacted to ensure robotaxi companies can “perform reliably” during extraordinary events.
SpaceX abruptly aborted the second attempted launch of its upgraded Starship rocket system on Thursday, just moments after the booster ignited at the company’s complex in South Texas.
Zoox issued a software recall after one of its robotaxis got confused by smoke emitting from an emergency fire scene in June.
One more thing …
Uber chief product officer Sachin Kansal talks to TechCrunch EIC Connie Loizos about travel, AI agents, and playing both sides of the robotaxi race, in the latest Strictly VC podcast episode. If you’d rather read the interview, check out the Q&A.
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