TechCrunch Mobility: The robotaxi expansion that really matters

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It seems like not a day goes by without Waymo making some sort of expansion announcement. Detroit, Las Vegas, Nashville, San Diego, and Washington, D.C., are just a few of the cities the company plans to bring robotaxis to in the coming months. But as I said in this post before, there is another “expansion” that I think is more important.

Highways.

Now, after years of testing and development, the company’s commercial robotaxi service uses highways around the San Francisco Bay Area, Phoenix and Los Angeles.

This is a crucial expansion for the company. It’s the concrete and asphalt connective tissue of sprawling metro areas like the Bay Area. This new rapid access fuels Waymo’s expansion into that region, which now measures 260 square miles and includes Silicon Valley and San Francisco.

Robotaxi rides could have more efficient routes too. Waymo told me it will reduce ride times by up to 50%.

Using highways is also essential for Waymo to offer flights to and from San Francisco Airport, a location the company is currently testing.

The highway-to-airport moment will be a big eye-opener for Waymo. But will that be enough to help push him into the black? Until someone presents me with their balance sheet, I can’t tell. It will definitely be a popular choice for travelers. This does not mean that the economy will go out.

Read on for more news, including Einred SPAC Offer, Deals for Harbinger and TiradarAnd also how via It achieved its first profits and the imminent closure of Rad Power Bikes. plus! Scroll down for Tesla survey results.

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It’s been nearly nine months since then Lucid Motors CEO Peter Rawlinson He resigned suddenly, leaving the company without a permanent replacement. However, that may be about to change.

Some little birds told us that Lucid Motors has zeroed in on a candidate for the top job. It is expected to be someone from outside the organization, which is perhaps not surprising; In August, we shared here that the company and the executive recruiter it used had cast a very wide net and were even calling back some candidates. This would probably mean that Mark Winterhoffwho had been serving as interim CEO, will return to the COO role he held before Rawlinson’s departure.

Got a tip for us? Email Kirsten Korosek at kirsten.korosec@techcrunch.com Or my Signal at kkorosec.07, or email Sean O’Kane at sean.okane@techcrunch.com.

Offers!

Another SPAC has entered the AV world! SPAC mergers may not be officially back, but they are certainly popular among self-driving car companies.

EinredThe Swedish self-driving electric truck startup plans to go public through a merger with a special purpose acquisition company, just six weeks after raising $100 million from investors. The SPAC merger with Legato Merger Corp values ​​Einride at $1.8 billion in pre-money equity.

Einride already generates revenue, which may seem obvious but there have been plenty of pre-revenue carriers that have had a SPAC in recent years.

Currently, its main source of revenue comes from its software-as-a-service product and a fleet of 200 heavy-duty electric trucks used by companies like Heineken and PepsiCo. Its unusual-looking self-driving trucks are still in experimental mode.

The merger is expected to close in the first half of 2026, with Einride making its debut on the New York Stock Exchange.

Other deals that caught my attention this week…

Forterraa company that develops autonomous defense technology, has raised $238 million in equity and debt financing. Moore Strategic Ventures led the financing share, while Crescent Cove provided debt financing.

Gobovthe express delivery startup, has raised $250 million in a round led by Eldridge Industries and Valor Equity Partners. Baillie Gifford, Robin Hood, Equalis Capital, George Rowan, Yakir Gapay, and the co-founders of Jobov. The funding was valued at $8.5 billion, according to Bloomberg, a significant decline from its last increase in 2021.

Harbingerthe Los Angeles-based electric truck startup, has raised $160 million in a Series C funding round co-led with FedEx. As part of the investment, FedEx has ordered 53 electric truck chassis from Harbinger.

Octopus electric vehiclesThe UK-based electric car rental company has struck a deal with lenders, including Lloyds Banking Group, Morgan Stanley and Credit Agricole, to raise its total financing line to 2 billion pounds ($2.6 billion), Sky News reported.

Tiradara Boston-based startup developing a solid-state sensor, has raised $150 million in a Series B funding round from investors Capricorn Investment Group, the venture arm of Lockheed Martin, mobility-focused Ibex Investors, and VXI Capital, a new defense-focused fund led by the former CTO of the U.S. Army’s Defense Innovation Unit.

Upan e-bike refurbishment startup, has raised $60 million in a Series C funding round led by AP Moller. Galvanize, Ora Global and Sequoia Capital also participated. The company has raised more than $125 million since its founding in 2021.

fia German startup that is piloting car rentals for remote customers, has announced a $60 million investment from a Singaporean tech heavyweight. He catches. The deal, which is subject to regulatory approval and is expected to close by the end of the year, could be followed by “an additional $350 million as combined milestones are achieved within the first year.”

Notable Readings and Other Stories

Ford It expands the availability of BlueCruise hands-free highway driving technology in Europe. The automaker will make the system available in several vehicles, including the Puma, Puma Gen-E, Kuga and Ranger PHEV 5 models from spring 2026.

Gobi Aviation It conducted the first flight of its self-driving VTOL electric turboprop aircraft. This demonstrator aircraft should not be confused with an all-electric air taxi, even though it is built on that platform. This aircraft has a hybrid turboprop powertrain and is designed for defense applications.

Lyft It has partnered with Curb, a ride-hailing platform for licensed taxis. Under the deal, Lyft riders will be connected to Curb’s network of drivers through integration with the Curb Flow platform, which is already in place in Los Angeles. Other cities will follow soon.

Rad Power Bikesone of the most popular e-bike companies, may not be around for long. The company has informed its employees that it will close in January if it cannot find new financing or be acquired, according to an internal email to employees seen by TechCrunch.

Tesla Apple may bring CarPlay to its electric cars. But at this point, should it? Meanwhile, the company’s energy storage division is dealing with an expanded recall of its consumer Powerwall 2 product after reports of fires.

the Boring companyone of Elon Musk’s companies, is under scrutiny again. This time because of reports that firefighters conducting safety drills at a Boring Company construction site in Las Vegas suffered burns from chemicals used in the tunneling process. The controversy does not stop there.

Toyota It has begun production on a new $13.9 billion battery plant in North Carolina. While Toyota has several facilities in the United States, this is the first battery plant to be built outside Japan. The investment in the United States has not been completed. The company said it plans to invest up to $10 billion more than previously expected over the next five years.

Uber It has quietly begun trialling in-app video recording for its drivers in India. The ride-hailing company is also seeking more high-end customers through new efforts like Uber Ski, which allows riders to pre-schedule a ride to nearly 40 popular ski destinations in North America and Europe, including Vail, Colorado, and Park City, Utah.

via It took its first dividend since becoming a publicly traded company, and lost money. The technology transfer software company reported a loss of $36.9 million in the third quarter, an increase of 73% since the same period last year. Its revenues rose to $713 million, an increase of 11% year over year.

Another thing…

Remember the poll in last week’s newsletter? I asked what the purpose of the product was Tesla Most likely to be achieved by 2035? The options depend on the actual goals set forth in Musk’s $1 trillion compensation package:

• 20 million Tesla vehicles delivered
• 10 million active subscriptions to full self-driving
• One million robots delivered
• 1 million robotaxis in commercial operation
• None of these will be achieved

You are divided between two options: Tesla will deliver 20 million cars, which received 34.7% of the votes, and “None of these will be reached,” which received 32% of the votes.

The only item you seem to agree on is that Tesla is unlikely to achieve the other three goals. About 9.5% of readers chose the 1 million robot option, 12.6% chose 10 million active full self-driving subscriptions, and 10.5% chose 1 million robotaxis in commercial operation within 10 years.

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