Lyft jumps on reported plans to launch Mobileye-powered robotaxis ‘as soon as 2026

Investing.com -- Lyft shares jumped as much as 10% premarket Monday after a report from TechCrunch said the ride-hailing company plans to introduce fully autonomous robotaxis powered by Mobileye in Dallas as soon as 2026, with expansion to additional markets to follow.

Mobileye shares also rallied following the report, climbing around 9.5%.

The news emerged just a day before Lyft’s fourth-quarter earnings report and follows increased competition in the autonomous ride-hailing space. 

TechCrunch noted that Waymo is preparing to launch a commercial robotaxi service with Uber (NYSE:UBER) in Austin and Atlanta, while Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) has announced plans for an autonomous ride-hail operation in Austin starting in June.

To support its rollout, Lyft (NASDAQ:LYFT) is partnering with Japanese conglomerate Marubeni, which will own and finance the fleet of Mobileye-equipped vehicles, TechCrunch reported. 

While Lyft has not yet disclosed which automaker will supply the vehicles, the report notes that Mobileye’s technology is already integrated into cars from Audi, Volkswagen (ETR:VOWG_p), Nissan (OTC:NSANY), Ford (NYSE:F), and General Motors (NYSE:GM), among others.

Lyft’s Chief Policy Officer, Jeremy Bird, told TechCrunch that the initial launch in Dallas would scale to thousands of vehicles across multiple cities. He added that securing a fleet owner was a crucial step for Lyft’s asset-light business model.

“We have the platform, so it’s the ownership of the fleet that’s the big missing piece,” Bird told TechCrunch. He added: “When you have somebody that has experience in [fleet management] and the resources and the willingness to be a first-mover, that changes the game for us.” 

Lyft’s move comes amid Uber’s aggressive expansion in autonomous partnerships, securing deals with companies including Waymo, Aurora Innovation, Nuro, and Waabi, among others. 

TechCrunch reported that Lyft is actively engaging with multiple AV developers to expand its autonomous vehicle offerings.