Episode 287 | Autonomy Markets: Waymo Opens Door to Rivals, Uber Debate Heats Up, Tariffs Winners & Losers

This week on Autonomy Markets, Grayson Brulte and Walter Piecyk discuss Waymo’s unforced error with the Zeekr RT robotaxi, Uber’s future with autonomous vehicles and the winners and losers from the latest round of tariffs. Waymo’s Zeekr RT robotaxi has seen its price double due to a 100% tariff on Chinese-made vehicles, igniting a debate over whether Waymo made an unforced error with their Zeekr partnership. Could tariffs either accelerate a new OEM partnership for Waymo or see them abandon it all together?Meanwhile, Uber’s autonomy ambitions are accelerating and gaining momentum globally. This week, Uber announced a partnership with WeRide and the Dubai Road and Transport Authority to deploy robotaxis in Dubai. Could Uber’s largest autonomy market end up being outside the U.S.? Grayson and Walter debate the issue, while exploring the implications that tariffs will have on the autonomy ecosystem.Episode Chapters0:00 Tariffs 1:05 Impact of Tariffs on Waymo6:26 Does Waymo Need to Slim Down?9:10 Tesla FSD Unsupervised Launch11:41 Tariffs and The Trucking Industry 13:57 May Mobility 14:27 LiDAR Market18:25 Energy22:46 Uber’s Global Ambitions 25:15 Scaling Waymo31:00 Uber App37:23 Waymo Messaging 40:17 Zoox41:23 Lyft46:37 Personally-Owned Autonomous Vehicles 49:58 Next WeekRecorded on Thursday, April 3, 2025--------About The Road to AutonomyThe Road to Autonomy® is a leading source of data, insight and commentary on autonomous vehicles/trucks and the emerging autonomy economy™.Autonomy is transforming industries and creating an entirely new economy that we call the autonomy economy™. The Road to Autonomy provides advisory and market intelligence services that helps you better understand the market and stay ahead of what’s coming next. To learn more, say hello (at) roadtoautonomy.com.Sign up for This Week in The Autonomy Economy newsletter: https://www.roadtoautonomy.com/autonomy-economy/See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.