The archive · Hardware & Devices · Strategic decision · 2021–2026
Waabi's $1B bet: one AI brain for trucks and 25,000 Uber robotaxis
Waabi raised $1B (Canada's largest ever) to bet one simulation-trained AI model can run both autonomous trucks and 25,000+ Uber robotaxis.
Waabi
What the business is
Autonomous-driving company selling the Waabi Driver, an end-to-end AI brain for trucks and robotaxis, trained and validated in the Waabi World closed-loop simulator.
Starting capital：US$1B in Jan 2026: $750M Series C co-led by Khosla Ventures and G2 Venture Partners plus ~$250M milestone-based investment from Uber; ~$1.28B total after a $200M Series B in June 2024
How it started
Raquel Urtasun, former chief scientist of Uber's autonomous division (Uber ATG), founded Waabi in Toronto in 2021, betting that simulation-first AI could make self-driving capital-efficient. Uber invested from the Series A and holds a board seat.
What happened
Waabi ran commercial trucking pilots with safety drivers in Texas, working with Uber Freight since 2023 on the Dallas–Houston lane, and in October 2025 revealed its integration into Volvo's purpose-built autonomous truck. It delayed fully driverless trucking until the Volvo platform was validated, framing safety over speed. In January 2026 it closed a $750M Series C — investors included Uber, Nvidia's NVentures, Volvo Group Venture Capital, Porsche Automobil Holding, BlackRock and an ADIA subsidiary — plus a ~$250M Uber commitment tied to deploying 25,000+ Waabi Driver robotaxis exclusively on Uber's platform.
How it ended up
Still scaling: fully driverless trucking is pending Volvo validation, and the Uber robotaxi rollout has no public timeline; Urtasun says one shared model powers both, with robotics hinted as the next vertical.
Background
Waabi is a Toronto-based autonomous-driving company founded in 2021 by Raquel Urtasun, former chief scientist of Uber's self-driving unit. Its bet is that one end-to-end AI model — the Waabi Driver — can power both autonomous trucks and robotaxis, trained and validated in a closed-loop simulator called Waabi World rather than through massive on-road fleets.
By January 2026 the company had raised US$1 billion: a $750M Series C co-led by Khosla Ventures and G2 Venture Partners, plus a milestone-based ~$250M investment from Uber tied to deploying at least 25,000 Waabi Driver robotaxis exclusively on Uber's platform. Other investors included Nvidia's NVentures, Volvo Group Venture Capital, Porsche Automobil Holding, BlackRock and an Abu Dhabi Investment Authority subsidiary.
Waabi's trucks already ran commercial pilots with safety drivers in Texas, on Uber Freight's Dallas–Houston lane since 2023, and its software is integrated into Volvo's purpose-built autonomous truck. Fully driverless trucking was delayed until Volvo validation, which Urtasun framed as safety over speed.
The same week, Exploding Topics listed Waabi at 950% two-year search growth — a direct measure of the search spike behind this case. The open question is whether the shared-brain architecture delivers the scale it promises before rivals such as Waymo, Aurora, Wayve and Tesla lock up the robotaxi market.
What has to be true
- Simulation-first development lets Waabi claim capital efficiency: no large human fleets, data centers or chip sprawl like AV 1.0 (TechCrunch).
- One shared AI model for trucks and robotaxis turns a trucking bet into an option on robotaxis, and the Uber deal converts that option into committed capital.
- Uber's milestone-based $250M investment and exclusive platform deal de-risk distribution but tie real money to deployment milestones.
- Search interest is spiking — 950% two-year growth per Exploding Topics (Aug 2026) — matching the commercial milestones.
- The open risk is validation: driverless trucking slipped past its original target and the 25,000-robotaxi timeline is undisclosed.
What can be applied
If one AI model genuinely generalizes across two hard verticals, the second market is nearly free to enter; the real constraint is validation timelines you do not control.
Aftermath
As of September 2026, Waabi remains privately held and scaling: the Waabi Driver is integrated into Volvo's VNL Autonomous trucks, commercial trucking pilots continue with safety drivers in Texas, and the Uber robotaxi partnership is the company's first expansion beyond trucking, with no public deployment timeline. Urtasun says the same model that drives trucks will drive the robotaxis, and has hinted robotics is the next vertical. Total funding stands at roughly US$1.28 billion.
Sources
- Waabi raises $1B and expands into robotaxis with Uber
- Self-driving startup Waabi raises up to $1 billion and partners with Uber to deploy 25,000 robotaxis
- Top Trending Topics (Aug 2026)
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