Uber launches autonomous vehicles in Dallas

The latest: Uber will start offering robotaxi service at 9am Wednesday around downtown, Uptown, Deep Ellum and near Oak Lawn in partnership with Avride, the companies announced Wednesday.

• The launch comes weeks after Waymo said its cars will go driverless in Dallas.

Behind the wheel: Uber users in 9 square miles around downtown may be matched with an Avride when requesting a ride.

• The autonomous vehicle will have an employee in the driver's seat monitoring the route. Uber's driverless rides will launch later.

How it works: Riders will receive a notification that the car is an Avride before accepting and can switch to a non-autonomous car.

• Users won't have to worry about verifying driver names before getting in a car when using Avride. You simply click to unlock the doors when the vehicle arrives, get in and buckle up.
• There will not be a tip option at the end of the ride, but riders can still rate their experience.

State of play: Uber will have a "small fleet" to start but expects to have hundreds of autonomous vehicles in the next couple years.

• The expansion will likely be similar to Austin's where Uber now operates 200 autonomous vehicles in partnership with Waymo. It has 100 in Atlanta.
• The company also expects to expand into Arlington.

Context: The Avride is an electric Hyundai Ioniq 5. It has 13 cameras and a detection system to monitor blind spots and nearby objects.

• Riders can watch the route on a tablet in the backseat. The tablet and app also allow users to request to pull over.

Reality check: Autonomous vehicles may replace some human Uber drivers, but some routes may not be appropriate for a robotaxi. For example, riders may prefer a human driver when going to the airport to help with luggage.

• Employees will also still be needed to maintain the fleet.

What they're saying: "We really do believe that there's going to be more human drivers and couriers on the platform in the next 10 years, as more drivers come to the platform every day," Annie Duvnjak, global head of autonomous mobility operations at Uber, tells Axios. "AVs and human drivers and couriers will be able to operate in this hybrid way together."

What's next: Uber plans to have autonomous vehicles in at least 10 cities by the end of 2026.

What we're watching: If robotaxis will ever expand to Fort Worth.

💭 Our thought bubble: The Avride navigated a tricky left turn, potholes, traffic cones and pedestrians well during a test ride from Deep Ellum to the Winspear Opera House.

• The robots may be able to handle Dallas drivers better than other Dallas drivers.