Driverless Uber rides now challenging Elon Musk’s Tesla in its backyard

Need an Uber? How about one without a driver?

Need an Uber? How about one without a driver? Beginning Tuesday, rideshare hailers on Uber in Austin, Texas, can call a driverless Waymo, from Google’s parent company, Alphabet, for the first time. Travelers will be able to book rides across 37 square miles in Austin, the backyard of competitor Tesla, and in the Lone Star State that has long been a testing ground for driverless vehicles. “We’re true believers in the technology, and so personally, I believe autonomous vehicles coming to market is a good thing for the world… we’re happy and genuinely excited to see autonomy coming to market and starting to scale,” said Andrew Macdonald, Uber’s senior vice president of mobility and business operations, in an interview with CNN. “When you have a supportive city, when you have a supportive local government, it encourages competition, it encourages innovation, and that ends up being a good thing for consumers.” It appears there’s no bad blood between the two companies. Uber and Waymo, who were once embroiled in a lawsuit over self-driving technology, are now partners. “Our partnership with Uber in Austin is an exciting step toward further scaling our safe, convenient, and sustainable autonomous technology,” said Nicole Gavel, Waymo’s head of business development and strategic partnerships, in a statement. Riders in Austin who request an UberX, Uber Green, Uber Comfort or Uber Comfort Electric could be matched with a Waymo fully autonomous all-electric Jaguar I-PACE vehicle, at no additional cost, for up to four people.