TechCrunch Mobility: A new robotaxi scorecard shows China’s dominance

Welcome back to TechCrunch Mobility — your central hub for news and insights on the future of transportation.

Waymo’s robotaxis keep finding new things to drive into, and construction zones are the latest

Waymo’s robotaxis drove through highway construction zones 13 times before the company pulled the whole fleet from highway operations.

Mobileye’s US robotaxi launch will put it on both sides of the AV business

The Israeli tech company and Intel subsidiary said it will launch its own robotaxi service in a U.S. city in 2027.

Tesla ‘Robotaxis’ are not crashing because they are not running
Tesla ‘Robotaxis’ are not crashing because they are not running

Tesla didn’t report a single at-fault “Robotaxi” crash in the latest NHTSA autonomous-vehicle data — its only fresh incident was a Model Y getting rear-ended while stopped, clearly the other driver’s fault.
That sounds like good news for Tesla’s safety…

Baidu Apollo Go wins Level 4 robotaxi approval in Switzerland as AmiGo
Baidu Apollo Go wins Level 4 robotaxi approval in Switzerland as AmiGo

Baidu’s Apollo Go has received a Level 4 autonomous driving permit in Switzerland for AmiGo, a robotaxi service it is running with Swiss Post’s PostBus, putting the Chinese tech giant ahead of Waymo and Tesla in deploying driverless vehicles into Europ…

Waymo launches $30/month ‘Premier’ membership with priority pickups and cashback
Waymo launches $30/month ‘Premier’ membership with priority pickups and cashback

Waymo is launching its first-ever membership program, “Waymo Premier,” offering its most frequent riders priority pickups, 10% cashback, and early access to new cities for $29.99 per month.
The invite-only program marks a significant step in Waymo’s ef…

Waymo buys Apple’s abandoned self-driving car proving ground for $220M
Waymo buys Apple’s abandoned self-driving car proving ground for $220M

Waymo has acquired a massive 5,500-acre autonomous vehicle proving ground in Wittmann, Arizona, for $220 million — nearly double the $125 million Apple paid for it in 2021. The facility was the centerpiece of Apple’s now-dead self-driving car program.

Tesla expands ‘Robotaxi’ to entire Austin metro — but still has only ~20 vehicles
Tesla expands ‘Robotaxi’ to entire Austin metro — but still has only ~20 vehicles

Tesla announced today that its unsupervised “Robotaxi” service now covers the entire Austin metro area, a significant expansion of its geofenced operating zone.

It’s a notable milestone on paper, but the actual fleet serving this massive area remain…

Tesla patents camera wiper for self-driving — resulting in more doubts for FSD owners
Tesla patents camera wiper for self-driving — resulting in more doubts for FSD owners

Tesla has been granted a new patent for a miniature camera cleaning system with a built-in wiper designed to keep vehicle cameras clear for autonomous driving.

The patent addresses one of the most frustrating and well-known issues with Tesla’s “Full…

Waymo’s newest robotaxi is Chinese-made, built to make money, and now accepting riders

The launch of the Ojai minivan robotaxi comes after years of development and testing, but arrives amid a challenging time for Waymo.