In the U.S., Uber and Waymo work together. Waymo's robotaxis ride on Uber's app.
In London, they are about to become rivals. That is an awkward spot for two firms that still lean on each other.
Uber is now letting U.K. riders join a list. It boosts their odds of being matched with a self-driving car.
Those cars come from Wayve, a British startup. Uber designed the inside, with screens that handle 64 languages.
The signup is the clearest sign yet. Uber has teased a London launch for a while, and now the pieces are lining up.
There is no launch date yet, only "coming months." It still needs a regulator's green light.
A robotaxi ride will not cost extra. Riders who get matched can switch back to a human driver.
At first, each car will still have a safety driver behind the wheel. Fully driverless rides would come later, once the system proves itself.
The robotaxi race is turning into one of tech's biggest money fights, and Market Briefs covers it every morning in five minutes - plus a free investing masterclass when you sign up.
Uber will not have London to itself. Waymo started testing there back in April.
It now runs about 100 self-driving Jaguars across a 100-square-mile zone.
That sets up a fight with a partner. The two have worked together in the U.S. since 2023, starting in Phoenix.
They widened the deal to Austin and Atlanta last year. But the bond is clearly fraying.
In those cities, riders cannot hail a Waymo directly. They have to use the Uber app and hope for a match.
That gave Uber the upper hand at home, which makes the London clash sting more. The strain is out in the open now.
Uber's own tech chief posted a video calling a Waymo car "scary." That is an odd way to treat an ally.
Uber has bet on many such firms, not just Wayve. Each bet is a hedge against Waymo pulling ahead.
Behind the scenes, Uber has spread its money across the self-driving world. It backed Wayve's $1.2 billion funding round this year.
It also pledged $300 million more, tied to a London launch. That could push Wayve's raise to $1.5 billion.
Uber has built two new units for this push. One handles data, the other handles day-to-day robotaxi work.
It is a bit like a team owner buying stakes in rival clubs. Handy if you are not sure which one wins.
One thing still blocks this showdown: the rules. The U.K. is only now writing its self-driving laws.
It just opened pilot sign-ups in May. The lessons there will shape the final rules.
So the cars are ready, but the rulebook is not. Whoever clears the red tape first gets the early lead.
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