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> neither company has the tech experience to build one They have the experience to distribute software to millions of devices on a regular basis and run a logi

> neither company has the tech experience to build one They have the experience to distribute software to millions of devices on a regular basis and run a logistics platform and a consumer app. That's something automakers will struggle to do. Automakers can build cars. That's something Über will struggle to do. Seems like a fairly straightforward partnership to me. There are many automakers and most of them (anything vaguely in the budget category) will be struggling mightily if robotaxis ever work. Mightily struggling automakers like to make deals where they get to make autos.

mimixco 7y ago
The tech to distribute an app? You mean Google Play, lol? A teenager can get an app in there. Uber can't afford to run a national taxi service at scale for the same reasons no one else has ever done so. The economics of a taxi fleet don't scale to that size. Owning their own autonomous vehicles would only further erode their non-existent business model.
- erikpukinskis 7y ago
  No, I mean built the app, maintain it, build a relationship with users, get people to download it and tell their friends, all of that. > The economics of a [self driving] taxi fleet don't scale to that size. I'd be interested in hearing your analysis! I haven't heard that one. Tesla claims these vehicles will pay themselves off within two to three years once they can operate fully autonomously.
  - mimixco 7y ago
    Hubert Horan has done an amazing teardown with his series, "Can Uber Ever Deliver?" But you don't need to be a transportation logistics expert (as he is) to see that there are no national or even regional cab companies. The reason is that, after a certain size, the business simply doesn't scale.
    - SilasX 7y ago
      Arguably, smartphones, apps, and usage of the drivers' own cars have together reduced the administration costs, and thus raised the scale at which a provider can profitably operate. That interplay of factors hasn't been around for 100 years. Although I've often speculated if you could have had an Uber-like service in the 80s, where you register with your credit card on file, and then call a number with a location to get an estimate pickup, and then they page a driver to get you, perhaps with an authentication code.

mimixco 7y ago

The tech to distribute an app? You mean Google Play, lol? A teenager can get an app in there. Uber can't afford to run a national taxi service at scale for the same reasons no one else has ever done so. The economics of a taxi fleet don't scale to that size. Owning their own autonomous vehicles would only further erode their non-existent business model.

erikpukinskis 7y ago
No, I mean built the app, maintain it, build a relationship with users, get people to download it and tell their friends, all of that. > The economics of a [self driving] taxi fleet don't scale to that size. I'd be interested in hearing your analysis! I haven't heard that one. Tesla claims these vehicles will pay themselves off within two to three years once they can operate fully autonomously.
- mimixco 7y ago
  Hubert Horan has done an amazing teardown with his series, "Can Uber Ever Deliver?" But you don't need to be a transportation logistics expert (as he is) to see that there are no national or even regional cab companies. The reason is that, after a certain size, the business simply doesn't scale.
  - SilasX 7y ago
    Arguably, smartphones, apps, and usage of the drivers' own cars have together reduced the administration costs, and thus raised the scale at which a provider can profitably operate. That interplay of factors hasn't been around for 100 years. Although I've often speculated if you could have had an Uber-like service in the 80s, where you register with your credit card on file, and then call a number with a location to get an estimate pickup, and then they page a driver to get you, perhaps with an authentication code.