Quote:
Originally Posted by Brupal
Uber charges about $2 per mile, mostly because they have to pay the driver. If Tesla replaces the driver with an autonomous vehicle, and then builds a low cost Cyber Taxi or relies on existing owners to put their cars into the fleet, or turns around lease returns into robotaxis, they could easily undercut Uber by offering rides for $1.50 per mile and eventually $1 per mile or less. If a Tesla ride is meaningfully less expensive than an Uber, then instantly Uber’s market lead disappears. Uber has had 10 years to perfect their niche and have lost a cumulative $31 Billion doing so. They will have to partner with Tesla and pay them a licensing fee to enable autonomous driving to cut their costs enough to compete with Tesla or else it is game over. Meanwhile as the cost of rides falls, transit and even owning a personal car becomes expensive in comparison. I think autonomous ride sharing is going to be revolutionary, and it is going to roll out sooner than people think. I’d welcome any discussion on the topic.
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Except it won’t stay cheap. Nothing stays cheap. Sure they can undercut Uber and put them in submission, then let cost rise and much as they like. I expect their model to be like Uber - individuals own the cars and carry the maintenance burden while Tesla takes a hefty cut.