00:00Uber will let customers hail robo taxis from Amazon's Zoox starting in Las Vegas this summer.
00:06For more on the partnership, Bloomberg Tech's Ed Ludlow is joined by the CEOs of both companies. Ed?
00:11Yeah, thank you, man. We're talking about the Zoox purpose-built robo taxi.
00:15No driver controls, no steering wheel, no pedals, inward-facing seats starting in Vegas this summer,
00:21Los Angeles next year. And we're delighted to have Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi and Aisha Evans of Zoox with us.
00:27And actually, I've been fortunate to spend a lot of time with you in the last year.
00:31And you've always described Zoox as vertically integrated, control the stack, own the vehicle, own the app, own the service.
00:39You're going with a partner. What's changed?
00:42That hasn't changed. We're doing that.
00:43And I've also told you that we'd be practical about our commercial deployment.
00:49This is a big market.
00:51And so I talked to Dara in Las Vegas and L.A.
00:57We're really looking forward to bringing our experience and sort of this way to ride to the Uber platform in
01:04addition to also being available.
01:07The way to ride is interesting.
01:08You know, Uber is not a ride.
01:09It is a platform, a marketplace for increasingly different kinds of rides.
01:14What is it, Dara, that you think you can help Zoox do that I guess they wouldn't otherwise be able
01:19to do on their own?
01:20Well, we bring enormous distribution on a global basis.
01:24And I think that there's this narrative of it's either or.
01:27You know, either you go direct to your customer or you go through a platform.
01:30And the fact is, if you look, for example, on Uber Eats, you have some of the best brands in
01:36the world, whether it's a McDonald's or a Starbucks or Chipotle,
01:40having a direct interaction with customers through their own apps, but also using the platform to expand their distribution.
01:48And I see the same thing with Zoox as well.
01:50You know, Zoox is on his way to create one of the best brands in the business and transportation.
01:54Which you've experienced recently, right?
01:55Absolutely.
01:56You went into the ride.
01:56It's a great experience.
01:58It's a purpose-built vehicle.
01:59And to have that experience on Uber, we think, will only magnify what Zoox is bringing to the marketplace.
02:06This is small scale in the first instance, right?
02:08You know, Las Vegas, where you're already active, and then LA.
02:12The mechanics of it are interesting, right?
02:14Because as a rider, you are not guaranteed in the first instance that you can choose a Zoox.
02:20It's algorithmic.
02:21It depends on the circumstances for you to have, I think the language you use is the opportunity to be
02:26matched with a Zoox.
02:27I guess supply in the first instance is why you've pursued that plan at first.
02:34Yeah, but really, no.
02:37Because, look, it's a platform.
02:39It's a global platform.
02:40It's available.
02:41You have all kinds of people who show up in Las Vegas.
02:45Some might know about Zoox.
02:46Some might not.
02:48And the ones who don't probably know about Uber.
02:50So why not take advantage of that?
02:52That's really all it is.
02:53This is early.
02:55But would you just explain, I guess, longer term what the business plan is?
02:58Is there a per-ride revenue share agreement?
03:01How do you split the fare when you're able to charge a fare, Dara?
03:05I think for us now, the focus is going to be the customer experience.
03:07We want to make sure that whether, obviously, the Zoox direct experience is going to be best of breed, but
03:13also having the experience through Uber is going to introduce you to the differentiated experience on Zoox as well.
03:20So that's really going to be what Aisha and I are focused on.
03:25You know, I would say the economics take care of themselves over the long term.
03:29Data is going to be critically important here.
03:31So let's start, I guess, Dara, with what data sets can Uber provide Zoox that help them with scale and
03:39data sharing that you've got in place?
03:41Well, we are certainly going to work with Zoox in terms of traffic patterns, and now Zoox is going to
03:48have access to that data directly as well.
03:50But I think the combination of the traffic patterns that we see and the customers that we see, whether local
03:56or international, along with Zoox's proprietary data, I think is going to help Zoox be even more efficient as an
04:04entity going forward.
04:05Yeah, and I'll add to that also the experience of dealing with things or just starting to deal with large
04:10events, things that Uber knows how to do in their sleep and will essentially speed up our knowledge of doing
04:17that.
04:18And also speed up deployment.
04:20Of course.
04:20You've always been very careful and cautious, I think, is the wording that you've used.
04:25But is there now a sort of a different approach that working with Uber gives you to get the Zoox
04:32purpose-built vehicle?
04:33We can bring it up on the screen again.
04:34You know, it's a unique form factor in this country.
04:37And, of course, there was the big NHTSA news yesterday.
04:39But what's, again, same question, what's changed in your ability to do that?
04:44So I think the last time you asked me the question, I said, look, first, we want to be ready.
04:49Our approach will always be cautious and small and scale from there.
04:53What's changed is that we're deploying in Vegas.
04:56We know the market very well.
04:59We understand the patterns.
05:01And we think that partnering with their Uber and the team at Uber will really help us not just bring
05:08the differentiated customer experience, but speed up how you deploy, how you operate on a daily basis.
05:16And we're looking forward to that.
05:17Dara, Uber's shares are up 2%, but when the news hit, you know, in pre-market, there was a really
05:22positive reception to this.
05:24What do you make of that?
05:26You know, it's consistent with what you've already done.
05:29Capital-like model partner with both automakers, the technology stack, and software needs.
05:34Well, we think autonomous represents the future of transportation, right?
05:38It's safer, ultimately, than human beings.
05:41We think it will make transportation available to more people.
05:44So this is just another step in our direction of an open platform for both human drivers and robot drivers
05:55who are safe, who are best of breed.
05:56And I think Zoox represents one of the top brands and top technologies and top experiences in the industry.
06:03And we're very proud to partner up with Zoox, and we're really looking forward to growing together.
06:07Dara, what did you learn from your ride in Las Vegas as a market?
06:11You know, I think that obviously the Zoox experience is, I think, going to play in any market.
06:18But Las Vegas especially, it's a social place to go.
06:21People go to Las Vegas in groups, et cetera.
06:24And one of the, what was clear to me with Zoox is a differentiated experience in terms of the setup.
06:31It is a purpose-built vehicle.
06:32It feels, when you're inside, it feels so big and so generous in terms of the space.
06:38But then actually, the vehicle itself is quite efficient.
06:41So for me, it was very interesting.
06:43I think Zoox is unique in building out this kind of vertical stack, purpose-built vehicle.
06:48And for me, the quality of the ride was absolutely on display for me.
06:53Aisha, you are a member of Amazon's leadership team, otherwise known as the S-team.
06:58You're actually ranked number one in alphabetical order.
07:00I checked.
07:02A lot of questions I get for you is the capital plan.
07:06You know, if you can get some more money from Amazon to accelerate your progress.
07:10Amazon's been active in the bond market this week.
07:13What can you tell us about your access to capital?
07:15Amazon has been great.
07:18We're super happy to have them as a parent.
07:21Capital is not something I worry about.
07:22I worry about executing, delivering.
07:25Now that we're entering this commercial phase, this promise of a safer, cleaner, more enjoyable future on the road,
07:34with our purpose-built vehicle that really gives you this delightful experience is really what we're focused on.
07:40I don't worry about capital at all.
07:42I worry about delivering.
07:44Uber is becoming kind of like the neutral marketplace for all kinds of AV providers, not just in the U
07:50.S., but globally.
07:51Have to ask, therefore, have you held any talks with Tesla about convincing them to take their plan,
07:57which is a proprietary ride-hailing service, but also a purpose-built vehicle to the Uber app?
08:02We talk with all the various AV providers.
08:05Tesla obviously isn't at the point now of getting to no vehicle operator, but they are testing, and their technology
08:13is excellent.
08:14So we're happy to have discussions with them as well as other players.
08:18But today is about Zoox, and we're here to celebrate that.
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