Core Insights - Travis Kalanick, the founder of Uber, is exploring the acquisition of the U.S. arm of Chinese autonomous vehicle company Pony.ai, with potential financial backing from investors and possible assistance from Uber [1][2] - Pony.ai went public last year with a market cap of approximately $4.5 billion and has been preparing its U.S. operations for a sale or spinoff since 2022 [2] - Kalanick's potential acquisition would mark his return to the self-driving vehicle sector after being ousted from Uber in 2017, following a series of controversies including a fatal incident involving an Uber test vehicle [2][3] Company Developments - Under Kalanick's leadership, Uber was initially focused on developing its own autonomous vehicle technology, but after his departure, the company sold its self-driving division to Aurora and shifted to a partnership model with other companies like Waymo [3] - Kalanick has been involved in robotics through his ghost kitchen venture, CloudKitchens, and would continue to manage that business if he acquires Pony.ai [4] - Kalanick expressed that Uber was competitive in the autonomous vehicle space during his tenure, suggesting that the company could have benefited from an autonomous ride-sharing product [5]

Pony AI is developing autonomous vehicle technology to be deployed on robotaxis, trucks, and everyday owned vehicles. It is focused on large cities in China, such as Shenzhen and Beijing. Shares soared last month because of partnership announcements with Uber and Tencent Holdings. Uber is now a strategic partner with Pony AI and hopes to deploy the technology for ridesharing in a Middle East market shortly. The Tencent partnership is with Tencent Cloud. In the early stages of its business model, Pony AI gen ...

Amazon’s autonomous vehicle unit Zoox is about to start mapping and gathering data in Atlanta, Georgia, a precursor to testing its self-driving vehicles and eventually offering public rides in the city.Atlanta will become the seventh city in the U.S. where Zoox is testing its vehicles. The company announced its testing plans just one day after Waymo — along with partner Uber — said it would start offering rides in its own robotaxis to early access users in Atlanta ahead of a larger public launch this summer ...

Shares of Lyft (LYFT) and Uber (UBER) have taken opposite paths post Q1 2025 earnings releases last week. While Lyft shares surged more than 28% on May 9, thanks to buyback issuance and bookings growth, Uber shares slumped on May 7 after reporting mixed first-quarter 2025 results. Let’s delve a little deeper.Lyft Stock Surges on Strong Results and Buyback PlanShares of Lyft recorded their best day on May 9 since February 2024, after the company announced an expanded share repurchase program and better-than- ...

About Kodiak Robotics, Inc. Kodiak Robotics, Inc. was founded in 2018 and has become a leader in autonomous ground transportation committed to a safer and more efficient future for all. The company has developed an artificial intelligence (AI) powered technology stack purpose-built for commercial trucking and the public sector. The company delivers freight daily for its customers across the southern United States using its autonomous technology. In 2024, Kodiak became the first known company to publicly ann ...