Lucid Group (LCID), Nuro, and Uber Technologies (UBER) unveiled the production intent vehicles that will be used in their global robotaxi service and introduced the Uber-designed in-cabin rider experience for the first time at CES.
Nuro
Highlights of the robotaxi will include a next-gen sensor array featuring high-resolution cameras, solid-state lidar sensors, and radars that provide 360-degree perception. Halo-mounted integrated LEDs will help riders easily identify the correct vehicle, display rider initials, and provide clear status updates from pickup through dropoff. In-vehicle visualization will show what the robotaxi sees and its planned path in real-time, including maneuvers such as yielding to pedestrians, slowing at traffic lights, changing lanes, and dropping off a passenger. The robotaxi was noted to leverage compute based on Nvidia’s (NVDA) Drive AGX Thor, supporting the real-time AI processing and system integration required for advanced autonomous driving.
The companies also announced that autonomous on-road testing began last month, an important milestone in the development and validation of the robotaxi service ahead of its expected launch in the San Francisco Bay Area later this year. Nuro was noted to be leading the testing using robotaxi engineering prototypes supervised by autonomous vehicle operators, beginning in the Bay Area.
“The debut of our production intent robotaxi with Lucid and Uber is a significant milestone on our path to delivering autonomy at scale,” stated Nuro Co-CEO Dave Ferguson. “By bringing together Nuro’s proven level 4 autonomy, Lucid’s advanced vehicle architecture, and Uber’s global reach, we’re building a robotaxi service designed for real-world operations and long-term growth,” he added.
Pending final validation, the production-intent robotaxi is expected to start production at Lucid’s (LCID) Arizona factory later this year.
For its part, Nuro has a diverse investor base that includes Greylock Partners, Woven Capital, SoftBank Vision Fund, Sequoia Capital, Tiger Global, T. Rowe Price, Ballie Gifford, and Fidelity. Chipotle (CMG) is also reportedly a strategic investor. The company has secured strategic partnerships with major U.S. retailers and tech firms such as Kroger (KR), Walmart (WMT), Domino’s Pizza (DPZ), CVS Pharmacy (CVS), Chipotle (CMG), and Uber (UBER). Notably, Nuro has been working with its partners to deliver groceries, restaurant orders, and prescriptions through autonomous delivery vehicles across select U.S. cities.