Ride-sharing

Uber’s founder and ousted CEO Travis Kalanick, last seen operating a ghost kitchen startup, is forming a new company called Atoms, TechCrunch reports, that will include food delivery, mining, and transportation. He’s also, according to The Information, considering acquiring Anthony Levandowski’s (yes, that guy) autonomous mining company and using it as a launchpad for a new self-driving car company — with backing from his former company. Dude also gave a live interview on TPBN where he described the mining business as — in extreme Kalanick style — “my jam.”

Uber out here collecting robotaxi companies like they’re Pokémon! The majority Hyundai-owned Motional is operating a fleet of autonomous Ioniq 5s in Las Vegas. The arrangement is similar to Uber’s other AV partners: riders who indicate they’re interested in robotaxis may get matched with one of Motional’s vehicles.

The ridehail service is launching a new premium offering for anyone who thinks Uber Black is too pedestrian. Uber Elite will be invite-only and feature commercially licensed professional chauffeurs driving new-model luxury vehicles – less than three years old – such as the Cadillac Escalade, Lucid Air and Lincoln Navigator. Each ride includes complimentary ammenities such as chargers, bottled water, mints, and hand-sanitizing towelettes. It’s currently only available in LA and San Francisco, and soon in New York City – with more US and international cities to follow.

The companies aim to launch a pilot program in Tokyo by late 2026, allowing Uber riders to book robotaxis based on the Nissan Leaf EV, powered by Wayve’s autonomous driving tech. In its press release, Uber said:

The ridehailing giant adds another robotaxi partner to its swelling stable of firms. Uber customers who indicate an openness for driverless could be matched with a Zoox robotaxi. The partnership will launch in Las Vegas this summer, followed by Los Angeles by mid-2027. Zoox will also continue to offer its service through its own app.

The feature that allows women to adjust their settings to indicate a preference for a woman driver in all circumstances is coming to more cities, including New York, Philly, D.C., Atlanta, and Austin. Uber started piloting the feature in San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Detroit in 2025 and is now expanding it after receiving positive feedback.

The ridehail company is working with Irish drone company Manna to launch a commercial drone delivery service on the Emerald Island. This is Uber’s first drone delivery deployment in Europe, although the two companies say they plan on bringing their service to more cities in the future. Uber also oversees drone delivery in Dallas, Texas, with Flytrex, while Manna used to deliver Samsung electronics via drone in its home market.

On Monday afternoon, Uber announced it’s buying the parking spot reservation app for an undisclosed amount, saying it plans to add parking benefits to Uber One and build in-app reservation into its main app, bringing car owners into Uber’s ecosystem.

Say that five times really fast! Uber has said it would use Baidu’s Apollo Go robotaxis in London, and now the company is adding Dubai as well, starting in March 2026.

The new accounts for riders aged 13 to 17 launch today in over 200 major markets, including New York, Chicago, Atlanta, Dallas, Boston, and Washington, DC. Parents get a link to track trips in real time, receive updates at pickup and drop-off, and can communicate directly with their teen’s Lyft driver if needed, the company says. The announcement comes almost three years after Uber first launched its teen accounts.

Lyft made a big splash when it bought Citi Bike’s parent company in 2018. It promised huge investments and improved service. But, it’s also raised prices at a stunning rate, far outpacing inflation and fares for other transportation in NYC. And yet, it hasn’t bothered digging out most of its bike docks, according to Streetsblog.

The case involves a woman passenger who sued Uber after being sexually assaulted by a driver, accusing the company of failing to take basic precautions to protect customers.

Uber customers can now be matched with a robotaxi operated by Avride in a small, 9-square mile section of Dallas. The vehicles, Hyundai Ioniq 5s, still have safety drivers for now as part of a phased introduction, with fully driverless operations coming later. The fleet will also be small at first, but will grow to “hundreds” over time, the company says. This is Uber’s latest robotaxi deployment in the US, following the partnership with Waymo in Austin and Atlanta.

The workers, part of Project Sandbox, were one month into an expected three month stint, Business Insider reports. Around a dozen people were involved, though it’s not clear how many were cut.

The company has announced a UK trial with autonomous delivery company Starship, starting in Sheffield and Leeds. It’s Uber’s first delivery bot trial in Europe, after tests in various US cities.

The California governor, who is already angling for a presidential run, has a stack of AI regulation bills he can veto before October 12th. Newsom has a slew of tech donors — and may want more tech money for a presidential run. OpenAI is also staffed up with Newsom-affiliated operators. So will Newsom sign the bills?

The US Department of Justice filed a lawsuit alleging that the ridehail company “routinely refuse to serve individuals with disabilities,” including people with service animals and stowable wheelchairs. Uber settled a previous lawsuit with the Biden administration over a similar issue, but clearly this is an ongoing problem with ridesharing.

Takeout on demand first expanded to groceries, and then to other retail, but the branding hasn’t always kept up. With Uber Eats now delivering from Best Buy, that opens the door to some pretty strange dinner orders,