This week on Autonomy Markets, Grayson Brulte and Walter Piecyk marked the one-year anniversary of Autonomy Markets and discussed the reignited debate between LiDAR and vision-only after comments made by Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi during an interview. 

During the interview, Mr. Khosrowshahi stated that in the short term, a combination of camera, LiDAR, and radar is the “right solution,” noting that all of Uber’s current partners use this combination. This statement prompted a response from Elon Musk, who argued via a post on X that LiDAR and radar actually reduce safety due to “sensor contention” and reaffirmed Tesla’s commitment to a camera-only system. 

Beyond the technical debate, Grayson and Walt discussed Tesla’s expanded Robotaxi service in Austin and the growing opposition to a potential Waymo deployment in New York City.

Episode Chapters

0:00 One-Year Anniversary of Autonomy Markets

2:14 Dara Khosrowshahi Reignites LiDAR vs Vision-Only Debate

9:24 Elon Musk’s LiDAR Rebuttal 

11:49 What if Tesla Embraced LiDAR?

14:29 Robotaxi Expands in Austin, Once Again

18:14 Traffic Fatalities 

20:32 Waymo Begins Testing in New York City

26:06 Boring Company is Testing FSD Supervised in Las Vegas

29:07 Stellantis Shuts Down Internal ADAS Development Program

31:28 Next Week

Recorded on Thursday, August 28, 2025

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About The Road to Autonomy

The Road to Autonomy provides market intelligence and strategic advisory services to institutional investors and companies, delivering insights needed to stay ahead of emerging trends in the autonomy economy™. To learn more, say hello (at) roadtoautonomy.com.

Sign up for This Week in The Autonomy Economy newsletter: https://www.roadtoautonomy.com/ae/

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Anshuman Saxena, Vice President and Head of ADAS/Autonomous Driving Products, Qualcomm joined Grayson Brulte on The Road to Autonomy podcast to discuss Qualcomm’s Snapdragon autonomy strategy.

Qualcomm’s automotive division is rapidly expanding, with revenue up 59% year-over-year to $959 million. At the center of this growth is the company’s Snapdragon Digital Chassis, a comprehensive automotive platform and the cornerstone of Qualcomm’s autonomy strategy.

As part of this approach, Qualcomm is redefining the digital cockpit by integrating AI-powered natural language interactions, advanced graphics through Adreno GPUs, and vision-based systems that enhance both safety and user experience.

Looking ahead, Qualcomm’s Snapdragon architecture is not only powering vehicles today but also laying the foundation for robotics and future intelligent systems.

Episode Chapters

0:00 Qualcomm’s Approach to Autonomy

6:10 ADAS Growth Opportunity 

10:09 Consumer Adoption of ADAS

12:10 In-Vehicle Experience 

16:37 Snapdragon Digital Chassis

17:44 Adreno GPU

24:15 Developing Technology with Partners

28:05 Robotaxi Platform

29:36 Vision Systems 

33:07 Personally Owned Autonomous Vehicles 

35:46 Reasoning 

40:54 Chip Design 

45:16 Future of Qualcomm’s Automotive Division 

Recorded on Tuesday, August 26, 2025

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About The Road to Autonomy

The Road to Autonomy provides market intelligence and strategic advisory services to institutional investors and companies, delivering insights needed to stay ahead of emerging trends in the autonomy economy™. To learn more, say hello (at) roadtoautonomy.com.

Sign up for This Week in The Autonomy Economy newsletter: https://www.roadtoautonomy.com/ae/

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This week on Autonomy Markets, Grayson Brulte and Walter Piecyk discuss the significant operational challenges Waymo and Uber are currently experiencing in Atlanta and Nuro's Series E round.

Waymo’s launch in Atlanta has gone anything but smooth. A shortage of vehicles and frequent rider pairing issues on Uber have sparked negative local media coverage, with Fox 5 Atlanta even publishing a guide on how to improve your chances of getting a Waymo ride. 

The Atlanta launch has raised questions about the long-term future of Uber and Waymo’s partnership. While Waymo and Uber are facing vehicle supply issues in Atlanta, Nuro successfully closed a Series E round led by Uber that raised $203 million at a valuation of $6 billion.

Episode Chapters

0:00 Robots

2:42 Nuro Series E

4:54 Delivery Robots Part 1

6:11 Fleet Management 

9:24 Delivery Robots Part 2

14:26 Waymo on Uber in Atlanta 

21:15 Status of Waymo and Uber’s Relationship 

26:58 Helm.ai Honda Expand Partnership 

32:21 Alibaba’s Autonomous Driving IPO

34:16 Baidu Apollo Go

36:35 Tesla FSD in Japan

38:46 Cybercab

39:32 Next Week

Recorded on Thursday, August 21, 2025

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About The Road to Autonomy

The Road to Autonomy provides market intelligence and strategic advisory services to institutional investors and companies, delivering insights needed to stay ahead of emerging trends in the autonomy economy™. To learn more, say hello (at) roadtoautonomy.com.

Sign up for This Week in The Autonomy Economy newsletter: https://www.roadtoautonomy.com/ae/

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

David Welch, Detroit Bureau Chief, Bloomberg joined Grayson Brulte on The Road to Autonomy podcast to discuss GM’s renewed interest in autonomous vehicles.

From robotaxis to personally owned autonomous vehicles, GM is once again preparing to enter the autonomous vehicle. This time in a initiative led by Chief Product Officer Sterling Anderson, GM is focusing on developing personally owned autonomous vehicles. 

Despite the shift in strategy, GM faces significant hurdles. The company must rebuild trust with the tech community to attract top talent after Cruise’s high-profile failures. At the same time, the company continues to face intense competition from Tesla, whose rapidly advancing Full Self-Driving (FSD) system raises questions about whether GM can develop a competitive system in-house or if it will need to license technology from Waymo, Wayve, or Nuro.

GM’s return to autonomy opens the door to many questions. Questions that will only be answered in the years ahead.

Episode Chapters

0:00 GM Once Again Enters the Autonomy Market

4:07 Can Sterling Anderson Revive GM’s Autonomy Ambitions? 

6:36 GM’s “New” Autonomy System

9:16 Super Cruise Subscription Revenue 

10:37 Tesla

13:48 Does GM Have to License?

14:49 Rebuilding Trust

18:26 Would GM ever do a Waymo Deal?

20:04 Licensing + Data

23:51 Timeline

26:43 Pricing Autonomy

32:41 Ford

34:22 Where Does GM Ultimately Go?

Recorded on Monday, August 10, 2025

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About The Road to Autonomy

The Road to Autonomy provides market intelligence and strategic advisory services to institutional investors and companies, delivering insights needed to stay ahead of emerging trends in the autonomy economy™. To learn more, say hello (at) roadtoautonomy.com.

Sign up for This Week in The Autonomy Economy newsletter: https://www.roadtoautonomy.com/ae/

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This week on Autonomy Markets, Grayson Brulte and Walter Piecyk discuss GM’s sudden return to autonomous vehicles, Waymo’s growing supply constraints, and the launch of Tensor Auto.

A few months after shutting down Cruise, GM is once again re-entering the autonomous vehicle market, but this time with a twist. This time around the company will be focusing on developing personally-owned autonomous vehicles instead of robotaxis. 

This is GM’s third attempt at autonomy, raising questions about whether the company can regain the trust of engineers and the broader industry after repeatedly abandoning past efforts. While GM prepares for another autonomy reboot, Waymo continues to grapple with supply constraints. And then there is a new entrant to the autonomy markets, Tensor Auto (formerly Auto X) which is planning to launch a personally owned autonomous vehicle featuring 37 cameras, manufactured by VinFast. 

In corporate moves, Uber Freight CEO Lior Ron has left the company to become COO of Waabi in a surprising move that has drawn significant industry attention.

Episode Chapters

0:00 GM’s Revised Autonomy Plans

11:31 Ford’s Continued Autonomy Disdain

14:37 Where is Toyota?

16:06 Waymo’s Supply Constraints 

20:37 Waymo in Atlanta 

24:27 Is Waymo Expanding too Fast?

25:25 Tesla FSD

29:43 Robotaxi’s Upcoming Public Launch 

33:19 Tesla Eyes NYC Robotaxi Expansion 

35:02 Tensor Auto

43:20 Uber Freight / Waabi 

52:47 Next Week

Recorded on Friday, August 15, 2025

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About The Road to Autonomy

The Road to Autonomy provides market intelligence and strategic advisory services to institutional investors and companies, delivering insights needed to stay ahead of emerging trends in the autonomy economy™. To learn more, say hello (at) roadtoautonomy.com.

Sign up for This Week in The Autonomy Economy newsletter: https://www.roadtoautonomy.com/ae/

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This week on Autonomy Markets, Grayson Brulte and Walter Piecyk discuss Uber’s growing autonomous vehicle investments and why they won’t be modest. 

While Uber publicly framed their autonomy spending as “modest” and emphasized share buybacks, CEO Dara Khosrowshahi made it clear on the company’s Q2 2025 earnings call that more OEM partnerships and AV deals are on the horizon. 

At the same time, Uber pointed to “recycling” past investments, raising the question: why recycle when the company’s growing free cash flow can support both increased buybacks and significant investments in the autonomy ecosystem? Is this simply a bid to reassure Wall Street while simultaneously preparing for an autonomous future?

Anything is possible and we broke it all down on this week’s edition of Autonomy Markets along with Lyft’s renewed interest in autonomy and their willingness to invest and own assets. As Lyft prepares to spend (with a smaller balance sheet), Uber’s autonomy investments will be anything but modest.

Episode Chapters

0:00 Uber’s Autonomy Investments Narrative 

3:49 Who Finances Robotaxi Fleets?

6:16 What is Holding Back Growth of AVs?

8:26 Autonomous Driving Systems

10:20 Uber’s AV Exclusive Deals 

12:05 Uber Recycling Investments 

16:09 Uber’s Relationship with Waymo 

18:49 Lyft is Leaning into Autonomy

21:52 Lyft Partners with Baidu for Europe and UK Markets 

2428 Managing AV Fleets 

28:24 Aurora LIVE

31:24 Zoox NHTSA Exemption 

32:47 Autonomy Expands the Rideshare Market 

37:33 Next Week

Recorded on Thursday, August 7, 2025

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About The Road to Autonomy

The Road to Autonomy provides market intelligence and strategic advisory services to institutional investors and companies, delivering insights needed to stay ahead of emerging trends in the autonomy economy™. To learn more, say hello (at) roadtoautonomy.com.

Sign up for This Week in The Autonomy Economy newsletter: https://www.roadtoautonomy.com/ae/

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Andrew Chapin, Chief Operating Officer, Nuro joined Grayson Brulte on The Road to Autonomy podcast to discuss Nuro’s three-way partnership with Uber and Lucid Motors, which will see Uber exclusively deploy the Lucid Gravity robotaxi powered by Nuro on their platform.

In a deal that clearly validates their bold pivot to licensing, Uber has committed to deploying 20,000 Nuro powered robotaxis globally on the Uber network over the next six years, with the potential for significantly greater scale as the partnership matures.

This isn’t just another robotaxi announcement, this could be the blueprint for the future of robotaxi deployment. An autonomous driving software developer licenses its technology to an OEM, which integrates the software and hardware at the factory, while a third party owns and operates the vehicles on a commercial network.

Episode Chapters

0:00 Nuro x Lucid x Uber Deal

4:55 Going Global

6:39 Building the Lucid Gravity Robotaxi

13:15 Maintaining the Robotaxi

16:07 Nuro Hardware

19:41 What’s Next?

23:10 Nuro’s Business Discipline 

26:58 Preparing for Market Launches

31:31 Highways

33:08 Operations 

35:13 Looking Forward

Recorded on Tuesday, July 29, 2025

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About The Road to Autonomy

The Road to Autonomy provides market intelligence and strategic advisory services to institutional investors and companies, delivering insights needed to stay ahead of emerging trends in the autonomy economy™. To learn more, say hello (at) roadtoautonomy.com.

Sign up for This Week in The Autonomy Economy newsletter: https://www.roadtoautonomy.com/ae/

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This week on Autonomy Markets, Grayson Brulte and Walter Piecyk discuss Waymo’s expansion to Dallas without Uber, instead partnering with Avis and renewing a relationship that dates back to 2017 and the emerging Tesla double standard. 

Waymo’s multi-year partnership with Avis signals the company’s desire to maintain flexibility, rather than locking into exclusive partnerships. With Avis once again joining the autonomous vehicle industry as a service provider, could Hertz and Enterprise be next to jump back in to the industry? 

As Waymo continues to expand to new markets, Tesla ha recently launched a ride-hailing service in the San Francisco Bay Area, covering a vast service area from San Jose to Berkeley, albeit with safety drivers due to California’s regulatory constraints.

Staying in the policy theme, Waymo is facing fierce resistance in Boston, where several City Council members are attempting to ban autonomous vehicles unless a safety driver is present. The opposition underscores the uphill battle autonomous vehicles companies still face in when expanding to new markets. 

Then there is the Tesla double standard. No matter what the company does, someone seemingly will find something wrong, something to nitpick and something to complain about. From social media to regulatory hearings, the double standard is real, and unfortunately it is shaping some aspect of the public autonomous vehicle narrative.

Episode Chapters

0:00 Waymo Expands to Dallas

2:07 Waymo Partners with Avis Once Again

6:19 Dallas Robotaxi Market

8:24 Rental Car Companies

11:31 Waymo Highway Testing

13:30 Waymo’s Unfriendly Boston Welcome 

19:28 Tesla’s Bay Area Ride-Hail Expansion 

22:04 Tesla and Waymo’s Rabid Fans 

25:39 Tesla Robotaxi

27:48 Tesla & Waymo’s Impact on Uber

29:03 Autonomous Trucking

31:45 Aurora 

34:52 Investor Interest in Autonomous Trucking

36:04 Next Week

Recorded on Thursday, July 31, 2025

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About The Road to Autonomy

The Road to Autonomy provides market intelligence and strategic advisory services to institutional investors and companies, delivering insights needed to stay ahead of emerging trends in the autonomy economy™. To learn more, say hello (at) roadtoautonomy.com.

Sign up for This Week in The Autonomy Economy newsletter: https://www.roadtoautonomy.com/ae/

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Kevin Peterson, Co-Founder & CTO, Bedrock Robotics joined Grayson Brulte on The Road to Autonomy podcast to discuss the growing labor shortage in the construction industry and how Bedrock is developing autonomous construction equipment to help builders keep building.

America’s construction industry is facing a crisis with a shortage of 500,000 workers delaying projects by an average of two months and costing $2.7 billion annually. Bedrock is looking to solve that problem as they are building autonomous construction equipment using machine learning techniques such as imitation learning and reinforcement learning to teach machines how to dig, move, and adapt in real-world job sites.

Throughout the conversation, Grayson and Kevin explore the economic, technical, and operational challenges facing the construction sector, from power constraints slowing down data center builds to safety risks on chaotic job sites and how autonomy can solve these growing issues. 

Episode Chapters

0:00 From Cars and Trucks to Construction 

3:16 Automating Construction Equipment 

9:51 OEM Partnerships 

10:49 Construction Partners 

12:55 Data

16:56 Deploying Autonomous Construction Equipment 

24:00 Challenges 

26:15 Job Creation 

28:09 Human to Machine Ratio

30:28 Bedrock OS

33:40 Maps

34:29 Construction TAM

Recorded on Thursday, July 24, 2025

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About The Road to Autonomy

The Road to Autonomy provides market intelligence and strategic advisory services to institutional investors and companies, delivering insights needed to stay ahead of emerging trends in the autonomy economy™. To learn more, say hello (at) roadtoautonomy.com.

Sign up for This Week in The Autonomy Economy newsletter: https://www.roadtoautonomy.com/ae/

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This week on Autonomy Markets, Grayson Brulte and Walter Piecyk discuss Tesla and Alphabet’s Q2 2025 earnings calls, Tesla’s growing robotaxi ambitions and the launch of Zoox’s limited fixed-route service in Las Vegas.

Tesla’s Robotaxi expansion ambitions are growing, and on their Q2 2025 earnings call, Elon Musk disclosed that Tesla is looking to expand robotaxi service to Nevada, Florida, Arizona and the Bay Area as soon as this weekend. Two key factors behind Tesla’s ability to scale quickly are its expansive Supercharger network and its streamlined sensor suite, which is much simpler than those used by Waymo.

In Las Vegas, Zoox which requires a robust sensor-suite opened service to members of the public through what the company calls an “Explorers Program”. The operation is highly restricted running only between Resorts World and Luxor, with every ride requiring concierge assistance, giving it the feel of a Disneyland ride rather than an robotaxi service.

While robotaxis are scaling, the autonomous trucking industry continues to work through its business model. Multiple models are emerging, with some companies focused on licensing their technology and others building vertically integrated operations.This week, Walt joined the PACCAR earnings call to ask a question about their partnership with Aurora.

Episode Chapters

0:00 Tesla Q2 2025 Earnings / Robotaxi

4:26 FSD Take Rate

6:53 Safety

9:38 Robotaxi Expansion to Las Vegas?

11:15 Zoox Las Vegas Service

17:55 Who Launches Commercial Service First in Vegas? Zoox or Tesla?

18:46 Amazon’s Commitment to Zoox

21:24 Scaling Robotaxi

26:31 Robotaxi Bay Area Launch

28:21 VW’s Continued Autonomous Driving Struggles 

32:36 Alphabet’s Commitment to Waymo

34:14 Bot Auto Steves & Sons Partnership 

37:24 Autonomous Trucking

40:02 PACCAR Q2 2205 Earnings Call

45:19 Next Week

Recorded on Friday, July 25, 2025

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About The Road to Autonomy

The Road to Autonomy provides market intelligence and strategic advisory services to institutional investors and companies, delivering insights needed to stay ahead of emerging trends in the autonomy economy™. To learn more, say hello (at) roadtoautonomy.com.

Sign up for This Week in The Autonomy Economy newsletter: https://www.roadtoautonomy.com/ae/

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.