Waabi Raises $1B and Partners with Uber to Launch Robotaxis, Extending AI Stack Beyond Trucks

New updates have been reported about Waabi.

Autonomous driving startup Waabi has secured $1 billion in new capital and signed an exclusive ride-hailing partnership with Uber, marking its first major move beyond autonomous trucking into robotaxis. The raise includes a $750 million oversubscribed Series C led by Khosla Ventures and G2 Venture Partners, plus about $250 million in milestone-based funding from Uber tied to deploying at least 25,000 Waabi Driver-equipped robotaxis on Uber’s platform over time. This deal lifts Waabi’s total funding to roughly $1.28 billion, positioning it as a well-capitalized contender against larger rivals while validating its capital-efficient, AI-first approach. Uber will be both a strategic partner and an investor, deepening an existing relationship that already spans Uber Freight and aligning Waabi with Uber’s new AV Labs initiative, which is focused on scaling autonomous services across its network.

Waabi’s strategy hinges on a single, generalizable AI stack—the Waabi Driver and Waabi World simulator—intended to support multiple vehicle form factors and verticals, from highway trucking to urban robotaxis and potentially robotics. The company argues that its closed-loop simulation, digital twin generation, and scenario manufacturing allow it to train and validate its system with fewer real-world miles, fewer engineers, and lower infrastructure costs than “AV 1.0” competitors. While its fully driverless truck launch in Texas has slipped to the next few quarters, Waabi says the core technology is production-ready, with validation of purpose-built autonomous trucks underway through its partnership with Volvo and a direct-to-customer sales model for shippers. The Uber robotaxi rollout timeline and OEM partner remain undisclosed, but Waabi plans to integrate its sensors and software at the factory level on a fully redundant platform, preserving vertical integration and safety standards as it scales. For executives and investors, the key implications are clear: Waabi is using this funding and Uber exclusivity to accelerate commercialization across both trucking and ride-hailing, aiming to convert its AI-heavy, capital-light model into rapid market penetration and multi-vertical revenue growth.