01 / Field guide
Who does the work when a robotaxi has no driver?
Driverless rides still need dispatch, charging, cleaning, remote assistance, and recovery. Those operations decide whether robotaxis can scale.
Read the story01 / Autonomy in practice
What happens after the robotaxi leaves the demo.
Paid rides, fleet operations, remote help, labor, permits, and the economics that decide whether autonomous mobility can scale.
Explore the beatPaid ridesFleet workHuman interventionPlatform economics
Start here / 02 field guides
The essential reading.
02 / Field guide
Gig platforms after Prop 22: unions, robotaxis, and the earnings grind
Uber, Lyft, and DoorDash still run on contractor labor under Prop 22-era rules. Unions, EV subsidies, and robotaxis are three different answers to the same cost problem.
Read the storyLatest writing
From the field.
- 01
Robotaxis: what actually ships (and what still needs a person)
Waymo operates driverless rides across multiple cities. California permits still put Tesla in a different category. The work around each ride matters.
- 02
Waymo's paying DoorDash drivers $11 to close robotaxi doors, which tells you everything about where autonomy actually is in 2026
Waymo's running a pilot in Atlanta that pays DoorDash drivers around $11 to close robotaxi doors left open by passengers—a perfect snapshot of where "full autonomy" really stands when a six-figure robot gets stuck because a door didn't latch
- 03
Lyft blames Winter Storm Fern for weak Q1 guidance as stock tumbles 17%
Lyft's weak first-quarter forecast blamed winter weather disruptions, overshadowing a $1 billion buyback program and sending shares down 17% in the biggest drop since February 2025
- 04
Uber's Q4 earnings beat on revenue and cash flow, stock drops 7% anyway because Wall Street wanted perfect margins
Uber reported 22% growth in bookings and record cash flow in Q4 2025, but missed EPS estimates by 9 cents due to equity investment write-downs, sending shares down 7% as investors repriced margin expectations
- 05
Tesla's April 2026 Cybercab Launch Is Ambitious, But I'm Here For It
Tesla claims Cybercab production starts April 2026. The timeline probably slips. But if they pull it off, ride-sharing economics change fundamentally.
- 06
DoorDash Finally Posted Profit—Investors Dumped the Stock Anyway
DoorDash beat Q3 revenue and showed continued profitability. The stock dropped 17%—worst day ever. CEO Tony Xu's plan to spend 'several hundred million dollars' in 2026 triggered the selloff. Classic conflict: investors want cash back, DoorDash wants growth.
- 07
Lyft Missed Earnings by 60% and the Stock Went Up
Lyft missed Q3 EPS by 60% but the stock jumped 7%. Wall Street cared about one thing: $1.03 billion in free cash flow for the first time ever. That's the metric that actually matters.
- 08
Q3 2025 Earnings: Uber Misses, DoorDash Profits But Tanks, Lyft Surprises
Uber, Lyft, and DoorDash all reported Q3 earnings November 4-5. Uber missed estimates for the first time in quarters. DoorDash posted its first profit as a public company but stock dropped 17%. Lyft hit $1 billion free cash flow but missed EPS. Three companies, three completely different stories.
- 09
Waymo's Adding Detroit, Las Vegas, San Diego—1 Million Rides Per Week by 2026
Waymo announced robotaxi launches in Detroit, Las Vegas, and San Diego, targeting 1 million weekly rides by end of 2026. They're already at 100,000+ weekly rides. This is what execution at scale looks like—and it's widening the gap between Waymo and everyone else.
- 10
Amazon's Zoox Factory Can Build 10,000 Robotaxis Per Year—They're Making 1 Per Day
Zoox's Hayward facility is the first purpose-built robotaxi factory in the US, with capacity for 10,000 vehicles annually. They're currently producing one per day. The gap between capacity and production tells you everything about where autonomous vehicles are right now.