These partnerships are part of Lyft's efforts to catch up with its rival Uber Technologies Inc., which has already established 14 autonomous-related partnerships. However, none of the new partners Lyft announced is operating at the scale of Uber’s most high-profile collaborator, Alphabet Inc.’s Waymo. Lyft's focus on autonomous partnerships comes after it sold its expensive self-driving research unit in 2021 and had to suspend its autonomous offerings in Miami and Austin in 2022 following the shutdown of Argo AI.
Key takeaways:
- Lyft Inc. has announced three new partnerships with autonomous driving technology vendors, including Intel Corp. spinoff Mobileye Global Inc., May Mobility, and Nexar, as it seeks to offer driverless rides on its platform.
- The company will make its platform available to all cars with Mobileye’s self-driving system, and plans to deploy a fleet of self-driving Toyota Sienna minivans through Lyft in 2025 with May Mobility.
- The third pact is a data partnership with dashcam maker Nexar, which will pair Lyft’s data with Nexar’s video footage to build a dataset for autonomous technology research and development.
- Lyft is trying to catch up with its bigger rival Uber Technologies Inc., which has struck 14 autonomous-related partnerships across its ride-hailing, delivery and freight businesses.