Uber Will Use the Lucid Gravity as Its Robotaxi

Lucid and Uber are hopping on the robotaxi bandwagon.

The duo just unveiled the new Gravity self-driving SUV this week at CES in Las Vegas, which is set to launch later this year. Lucid announced the car in partnership with Uber (which once had aspirations of developing its own robotaxi) and Nuro, an autonomous driving company founded by former Waymo engineers. Testing of the new Gravity robotaxi has already begun as of December, and the first operational cars will be in the San Francisco Bay Area. Lucid’s new car is joining a crowded autonomous-car market, populated by Amazon’s Zoox, operating in Las Vegas; Tesla’s robotaxi, which is in Austin; and Waymo, which has popped up in many a city across the U.S.

“Our engineering, range and interior comfort offers a unique platform, and when combined with Nuro’s technology and Uber’s scale, we are collectively building an experience like no other,” Kay Stepper, a Lucid executive, said in a statement.

The most prominent feature of the new Gravity robotaxis is the “purpose-built roof-mounted halo,” which looks a lot more elegant than your average Waymo, and includes technology like lidar, high-resolution cameras, and radar. That technology is also spread across the body of the car in less-prominent areas. The halo has lights, too, to help passengers get into the correct cab.

Once inside, the Gravity has space for six people plus luggage, and it will also personalize each ride for each customer. That means when you climb in, the car will know your preferences for seat heating, music, and internal temperature. The screen will also show what the vehicle itself is seeing, including obstacles it’s avoiding and the layout of the streets. You can further use the screen to contact support or tell the car to pull over if you want to get out.

Lucid described the car it showed at CES as the “production-intent” model, which sounds like more or less like it’s the vehicle the company intends to build, pending “final validation.” Production will begin later this year in Arizona.

The car—and the partnership with Uber and Nuro—is a big boost for Lucid, if it makes it to production and begins operation, as the all-electric car start-up has been buffeted by headwinds in recent years, most of them related to the broad slowdown in enthusiasm for EVs. Few of Lucid’s problems have been caused by its cars, though, which customers and reviewers generally agree are some of the best in the business, if expensive. A successful robotaxi would help the brand reach a new level entirely.