On April 15, the Financial Times disclosed that Uber, the prominent U.S. ride-hailing behemoth, has pledged to allocate over $10 billion towards procuring thousands of autonomous vehicles and acquiring stakes in developers. This move marks a departure from its traditional asset-light 'gig economy' model, as Uber aims to mitigate the impact of the burgeoning autonomous taxi trend. Over the past year, Uber has expedited its deployment strategy by forging partnerships with more than a dozen suppliers, including industry leaders like Baidu and Rivian. The company has ambitious plans to roll out autonomous taxi services in at least 15 cities by 2026.

Based on relevant calculations, Uber is set to inject over $2.5 billion in equity investments, coupled with an investment exceeding $7.5 billion in constructing its autonomous vehicle fleet. Notably, Uber had previously divested its autonomous vehicle division. However, its CEO has now vowed to invest more than twice the amount garnered from that sale, with the total investment surpassing last year's free cash flow.