Gig economy and autonomous vehicle analysis: Uber, Lyft, DoorDash, Tesla, Waymo, and the race for autonomous mobility.
Lyft Inc. ride-hailing service and mobility.
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.
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.
Lyft acquired TBR Global Chauffeuring for $110 million, doubling down on premium human drivers while Uber invests billions in autonomous vehicles. These diverging strategies reveal fundamentally different bets about the future of ride-hailing.
Lyft announced a strategic partnership with Tensor Auto to deploy hundreds of autonomous vehicles starting in 2027, marking the company's first move into owning and operating its own AV fleet rather than just app integration.
Lyft's Flexdrive will manage Waymo's autonomous fleet in Nashville, marking Lyft's first major entry into AV operations and bringing real competition to Uber's autonomous strategy
Lyft is deploying May Mobility's hybrid-electric Toyota Sienna autonomous vehicles in Midtown Atlanta, marking the company's first AV deployment with the autonomous technology startup
Lyft announced significant changes to its board of directors last Friday
Lyft Inc. has settled a $10 million fine with the SEC for not disclosing a board director's role in a share sale involving billionaires Carl Icahn and George Soros, just before the company's 2019 IPO. The director, identified as Jonathan Christodoro, helped Icahn sell a 2.6% stake in Lyft to Soros at a discounted rate. Christodoro reportedly received fees for the deal and resigned from Lyft's board at the time of the transaction. The case raises questions about Lyft's transparency and disclosure practices.
Lyft co-founder once predicted in 2021, most rides would be self-driving