Waymo a threat?

On Thursday, Uber and Lyft both dropped around 10% on the news that Google-backed Waymo is expanding its operations to Miami. The self-driving taxi company said it would train its cars on Miami streets in 2025 as it prepares to offer its rides to customers in 2026.

Waymo has decided to partner with Moove, a company with African roots, that will be taking on the management of the fleet operations, facilities, and charging infrastructure. Interestingly, Waymo has decided not to partner with Uber in Miami. The market was disappointed because they had recently teamed up with the ride hailing app in Austin and Atlanta. It is worth noting that Uber is a big Moove customer and early investor.

The future of the taxi industry is self-driving cars. Uber used to have its own self-driving research division, but that was shut down to help the company reduce its massive cash burn at the time. It seemed that Waymo was going to be Uber's new self-driving partner, but maybe not.

The reaction of Uber and Lyft's share prices shows that Waymo (Google) is a real threat.