Uber Technologies Inc (NYSE: UBER) is in focus this morning after teaming up with WeRide to launch robotaxis in Abu Dhabi.
WeRide is a self-driving startup that already holds permits for its autonomous cars in several countries, including Singapore, UAE, the United States, and its hometown – China.
The Uber-WeRide news arrived only a day after Waymo, the AV business of Google, announced plans of expanding to Miami. Uber stock opened 2.0% up following the announcement on Friday.
When will Uber launch autonomous rides in UAE
Uber plans on bringing robotaxi rides to Abu Dhabi in 2025.
Initially, such rides will have a human driver present to “ensure a secure and reliable experience for riders and pedestrians.” The commercial service will then go fully driverless in the back half of 2025, as per a press release on Friday.
Uber’s autonomous rides will be available to hail from and to the Zayed International Airport – and will operate between Yas and Saadiyat islands as well.
The announcement can be seen as Uber’s response to recent concerns that autonomous vehicles that are broadly expected to flourish under the Trump administration could make incremental growth more challenging for it in the coming years.
Such concerns have materially weighed on Uber stock that’s now down well over 20% versus its high in October.
Uber has a dozen other AV partnerships
Uber’s team up with China’s WeRide is only one example of how committed the company is to using autonomous vehicles to its benefit.
The NYSE firm has signed similar agreements with a dozen other self-driving companies.
“Our autonomous strategy is working. AV partners are understanding the significant value Uber can bring to their deployment plans,” its CEO Dara Khosrowshahi told investors on a recent earnings call.
Redburn Atlantic analyst James Cordwell also expects autonomous vehicles to meaningfully “expand the addressable market” for Uber as it’s well positioned to be the “aggregator of autonomous vehicle providers.”
The investment firm has a $90 price target on Uber stock that translates to about a 40% upside from here.
Uber continues to beat Street estimates
The Uber-WeRide news arrives shortly after Uber Technologies reported market-beating results for its third financial quarter.
Uber reported a 13% annualised growth in monthly active users to 161 million and a 17% year-on-year increase in trips completed on the platform to 2.9 billion at the time.
For its current quarter, the New York-listed firm expects $1.78 billion to $1.88 billion in adjusted EBITDA – roughly in line with Street estimates.
The strength of the company’s financials makes up for another good reason to own Uber stock even though it doesn’t currently pay a dividend.
Uber shares are up some 13% versus the start of this year at writing.
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