{"text":[[{"start":12.04,"text":"Uber plans to take a $300mn stake in US electric vehicle maker Lucid as part of a deal that will entail the ride-hailing platform launching its first robotaxi fleet."}],[{"start":26.33,"text":"The companies on Thursday said Uber would purchase at least 20,000 vehicles from Lucid and become the group’s second-largest shareholder after the Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF)."}],[{"start":39.97,"text":"Under the agreement, customised versions of Lucid’s Gravity SUV, which uses technology from self-driving start-up Nuro, will be rolled out over a six-year period, starting in a large US city next year."}],[{"start":54.55,"text":"“Autonomous vehicles have enormous potential to transform our cities for the better,” said Dara Khosrowshahi, Uber’s chief executive. “We’re thrilled to partner with Nuro and Lucid on this new robotaxi programme, purpose-built just for the Uber platform.”"}],[{"start":71.78999999999999,"text":"Uber will also make a “significant” investment in Nuro — which makes sensors and self-driving software — and take a board seat. The size of the deal has not been disclosed, though it is understood to be in the “hundreds of millions of dollars” with the ride-hailing app joining Nuro’s series E round, which has valued it at $6bn."}],[{"start":95.42999999999999,"text":"The deal is the most substantial yet for Khosrowshahi as he pivots the company towards self-driving taxis. Uber has also teamed up with Alphabet’s Waymo self-driving car unit in the US, China’s Baidu in Asia and the Middle East, and traditional carmakers such as Volkswagen."}],[{"start":117.16,"text":"Uber faces steep competition from Alphabet and Amazon, which have more cash to invest."}],[{"start":123.69,"text":"The fresh capital and commitment to buy tens of thousands of vehicles provides relief for Lucid after a tumultuous few years when it racked up almost $6bn in net losses during 2023 and 2024."}],[{"start":139.18,"text":"Lucid shares soared closed up more than 36 per cent on Thursday."}],[{"start":143.91,"text":"Founder Peter Rawlinson, the former chief vehicle engineer at Tesla, stepped down unexpectedly earlier this year and Marc Winterhoff was named interim chief executive."}],[{"start":155.85,"text":"Lucid stock is still down from its peak in 2021. The group had to be bailed out by PIF, which owns 58 per cent of the company after injecting a further $1.5bn in August last year."}],[{"start":171.39,"text":"PIF is also the fifth-largest owner of Uber with 3.5 per cent, worth $6.6bn after a 50 per cent rise in the stock this year."}],[{"start":183.58999999999997,"text":"Lucid’s Gravity SUVs are listed at a retail price of $94,900 and have the longest range of any comparable EV at 450 miles."}],[{"start":195.83999999999997,"text":"Uber’s commitment — which also enables its fleet management partners to purchase vehicles — is worth roughly $2bn based on the cost of the vehicles and additional Nuro sensor kit."}],[{"start":209.23999999999998,"text":"Nuro’s technology will be integrated during the vehicles’ assembly at Lucid’s factory in Arizona."}],[{"start":216.07999999999998,"text":"Uber declined to comment on the financial terms of the deal."}],[{"start":220.95999999999998,"text":"“This is a starting point for a longer and bigger relationship . . . [It is] validation by Uber,” Winterhoff said in an interview. “Robotaxis are anticipated to be a very large topic, and up until now we haven’t played in [the market]. Now we have a stepping stone.”"}],[{"start":241.98999999999998,"text":"Dave Ferguson, Nuro’s co-founder, said the 20,000 vehicles represented a “minimum vehicle commitment” and it would provide an attractive “per mile cost” — the metric by which ride-hailing platforms measure profitability — relative to other robotaxi providers. “This is by no means going to be a subsidised product,” he said."}],[{"start":265.68,"text":"Uber is in talks to invest in a deal involving its ousted co-founder Travis Kalanick that will include the US arm of Chinese autonomous vehicle provider Pony.ai splitting off from the rest of the business, said two people familiar with the matter."}],[{"start":282.01,"text":"Uber declined to comment."}],[{"start":294.94,"text":""}]],"url":"https://audio.ftmailbox.cn/album/a_1752801993_6419.mp3"}