Yazılar

Lyft and May Mobility Launch Robotaxi Service in Atlanta

/in /tarafından

Ride-hailing company Lyft and autonomous vehicle startup May Mobility have launched a pilot robotaxi service in Atlanta, marking the partnership’s first public deployment.

Starting Wednesday, customers using the standard Lyft app can hail Toyota Sienna minivans retrofitted by May Mobility to operate on routes in and around Midtown Atlanta. The fares will be comparable to regular Lyft rides.

The service begins with a small fleet, each vehicle staffed with trained in-vehicle operators who can answer passenger questions and take control if needed. This rollout highlights Lyft’s strategy to integrate self-driving options into its platform through partners such as Baidu in Europe and Mobileye, as competition intensifies in the robotaxi space.

Jeremy Bird, Lyft’s executive vice president of driver experience, said the fleet will expand gradually: “We’ll start in the single digits of cars, move up to dozens, and over time to hundreds and thousands.” Neither Bird nor May Mobility CEO Edwin Olson gave a specific timeline. Olson noted the vehicles use a redundant drive-by-wire system and a 360-degree sensor suite combining lidar, radar, and cameras.

The pilot will be integrated into Lyft’s hybrid marketplace, allowing passengers to choose between autonomous and conventional rides. Management of the fleet will be handled by May Mobility, rather than Lyft’s Flexdrive operations unit.

Last month, Lyft held an AV Driver Forum in Atlanta to brief drivers on the program, while both companies engaged with local and state officials to ensure smooth deployment.

Competition in the U.S. robotaxi sector is heating up. Waymo, owned by Alphabet, has expanded its paid autonomous services in major cities, Uber has partnered with tech firms for global self-driving deployments, and Tesla launched its first robotaxi service in Austin, Texas, as well as a ride-hailing program in the Bay Area earlier this year.

Uber Teams Up with Pony AI to Launch Self-Driving Taxis in Middle East Pilot Program

/in /tarafından

Uber announced on Tuesday a new partnership with China-based autonomous driving company Pony AI, marking its latest move to expand into the robotaxi market. The collaboration will begin with a pilot launch in a key Middle Eastern market later this year, with plans for further international rollout.

During the pilot phase, Pony AI vehicles will operate with onboard safety drivers, with the goal of transitioning to fully autonomous commercial service as regulatory and technical milestones are met.

The deal is part of Uber’s growing portfolio of partnerships aimed at strengthening its foothold in self-driving mobility, as it competes with rivals like Lyft and Tesla. In recent weeks, Uber also announced collaborations with May Mobility and Momenta, and expanded its strategic alliances with WeRide and Alphabet’s Waymo.

Pony AI shares rose nearly 13% in premarket trading following the news, while Uber shares dipped slightly by 1%. Pony AI, which went public on Nasdaq in November, is backed by Toyota and has active robotaxi licenses in major Chinese cities including Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen. The company is also exploring expansions into South Korea, Luxembourg, Hong Kong, and other international markets.

As the U.S. government continues to ease certain regulatory barriers for self-driving vehicles—while requiring incident reporting—companies like Uber and Pony AI are accelerating efforts toward large-scale robotaxi deployment.