Uber Plans $1.25B Investment in Rivian for Self-Driving Taxi Fleet

Ride-sharing giant Uber announced a major partnership with electric vehicle manufacturer Rivian, committing up to $1.25 billion to deploy 10,000 autonomous SUVs as robotaxis by 2028. The deal begins with a $300 million initial investment, with additional funding tied to Rivian achieving specific self-driving technology milestones through 2031.

The ride-sharing company Uber announced Thursday it will commit up to $1.25 billion to electric vehicle manufacturer Rivian through a partnership that aims to put 10,000 self-driving R2 SUVs on the road as robotaxis starting in 2028.

The San Francisco-based ride-hailing company plans to provide $300 million upfront, with the remainder of the funding distributed through 2031 based on whether Rivian successfully reaches specific autonomous vehicle development targets, according to both companies.

The autonomous taxi industry has gained significant momentum recently following years of unfulfilled expectations, as advances in artificial intelligence and strategic technology partnerships offer new possibilities for navigating complicated traffic situations more efficiently while reducing operational expenses.

Although Rivian has yet to launch any robotaxi services and is primarily recognized for its premium R1S SUVs and R1T pickup trucks, the company revealed its first proprietary computer chip designed for autonomous driving capabilities in December. The automaker is also preparing to introduce its smaller, budget-friendly R2 SUV models this quarter.

In comparison, Alphabet’s Waymo currently operates approximately 2,500 autonomous taxis across multiple American cities and has been expanding its services rapidly, while Tesla has begun limited robotaxi operations in Austin, Texas, with CEO Elon Musk pledging aggressive growth throughout this year.

The Rivian R2 robotaxis will operate solely through Uber’s platform, beginning in San Francisco and Miami, with the companies noting that Uber holds an option to purchase an additional 40,000 vehicles starting in 2030.

“Should all milestones be achieved, the companies will have deployed thousands of unsupervised Rivian R2 robotaxis across 25 cities in the U.S., Canada, and Europe by the end of 2031,” they said.

Uber has established itself as a platform connecting various robotaxi providers and has formed partnerships throughout the autonomous vehicle sector, including collaborations with Waymo, Baidu and Lucid.

The company is also collaborating with Nvidia on self-driving technology, utilizing the chip manufacturer’s artificial intelligence and simulation systems to assist in developing and expanding robotaxi operations.