Uber and Motional Launch Robotaxi Based on the Hyundai EV Ioniq 5 in Las Vegas

JAKARTA - US ride-hailing company Uber Technologies Inc and autonomous vehicle technology company Motional announced on Wednesday, December 7 that they are launching the first public robotaxi service in Las Vegas.

Tight regulatory scrutiny and delayed commercial adoption of autonomous vehicle technology have delayed the adoption of robotaxi services, worrying investors.

The launch is part of a non-exclusive 10-year agreement between the two companies for driverless vehicles, with a Los Angeles launch expected to follow soon.

Under the multi-market deal, Motion's autonomous vehicles will also transport passengers and delivery goods for Uber and its Uber Eats division.

“Currently riders are being charged as part of the early days of launch promotion,” Uber said in an interview with Reuters. But they added that they plan to start charging for their driverless commercial launch.

Uber says they will have vehicle operators for now, though they are working to make driverless experiences fully available to the public by 2023.

If an autonomous vehicle is available to complete the trip, Uber will match the rider to the vehicle and they will receive an offer to go along before the autonomous ride is confirmed and sent to pick them up.

Uber revived its robotaxi program after a brief hiatus after selling its autonomous vehicle research division to San Francisco-based Aurora in 2020.

Uber has also signed a 10-year contract with autonomous driving startup Nuro to deploy the company's driverless delivery pods in California and Texas.

Last month, rival Lyft announced it would launch its robotaxi service in Los Angeles after launching in Las Vegas earlier this year.

Motional, which uses Hyundai Motor Co's IONIQ5 electric car for its robotaxi services, is a joint venture between the South Korean manufacturer and auto technology company Aptiv, and has been testing autonomous vehicles without safety drivers for several years.