Investors encourage Uber to offload money-guzzling self-driving vehicle unit

[Shawn Knight]

Some investors are suggesting to Uber that it offload its self-driving vehicle unit, a source familiar with the matter tells The Information.

Uber has reportedly sunk at least $2 billion into the money-hungry division over the past three years, the publication says, and has spent between $125 million and $200 million on it per quarter over the past six quarters.

Uber shut down its self-driving truck project last month in order to focus exclusively on its driverless car segment. The division’s future was in limbo following an accident in March that killed a pedestrian in Arizona.

CEO Dara Khosrowshahi has been open to the idea of partnering with someone else on its self-driving venture and according to The Information, some executives believe he might even agree to transfer the unit to another company if he can get some sort of guarantee in return that they’d have access to future self-driving cars.

With a potential public offering is expected as early as next year, Khosrowshahi may need to make a decision on the autonomous vehicle unit sooner rather than later.

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https://www.techspot.com/news/75994-investors-encourage-uber-offload-money-guzzling-self-driving.html

 

[Xclusiveitalian]

Self driving cars are the future, to get rid of it is the blockbuster move. Problem is, when cars are driverless People will still be People and destroy the interior, throw up inside it, and then what??

 

[Uncle Al]

A very good point. They will need to have some feature to automatically take the cars off line until they are cleaned or find a way to restrict rides to those arn't a threat of tossing their cookies in the cab (I have NO idea how to pull that one off!!!). There is one added feature I think they will have to add and that is a sort of touch screen in the drivers compartment that shows you in advance the intended route and allows you to alter it. Without that feature, eventually it will be possible for them to artificially extend trips to get more money .... not saying they will, but otherwise the temptation will always be there .......