RJ Hamster
The Robotaxi Wars Just Got Real
You are receiving this email because you are subscribed to Behind the Markets. If you no longer wish to receive these emails, please unsubscribe here. Dear Reader,Good morning!Today is Thursday, January 8th and today I want to tell you about something very exciting.One of my favorite times of the year is the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) where companies reveal some of the latest in tech and gadgets, and the first day of the conference, which kicked off Tuesday, did not disappoint. There is A LOT to talk about, and I’m sure Dylan will touch on some of the other big takeaways when he returns, but today I want to focus on something that really stood out to me.The robotaxi wars.It felt like for the first time, the conversation wasn’t about whether robotaxis could work. It was about who is closest to actually rolling them out — and how that battle is shaping up.One of the biggest moments came from a three-way partnership that tells you a lot about where this is heading… Uber, Lucid, and Nuro showed off what is essentially a production-intent robotaxi built on Lucid’s Gravity vehicle platform, powered by Nuro’s autonomous system, and designed to plug directly into Uber’s ride-hailing network.That combination matters.Lucid brings a high-quality EV platform that’s actually being manufactured today. Nuro brings autonomy tech that’s already been tested extensively in real-world delivery settings. And Uber brings something no one else can easily replicate: a massive, existing network of riders and cities.This wasn’t a concept car meant to grab attention. This is a car that can actually be manufactured.At the same time, Zoox — which is owned by Amazon — used CES to show off its own robotaxi and give public demonstrations of fully driverless operation. Zoox has been quieter than some competitors over the years, but this CES made it clear they’re not just experimenting. They’re preparing for scale.It reminds me a lot of Google, who behind the scenes was quietly building Gemini into a powerhouse that ultimately can now outperform ChatGPT in many respects.They were smart. They worked quietly. And only recently did Google really start getting the attention they deserve as a massive AI player.One thing that really stood out to me this year wasn’t just the hardware. It was the way the products themselves were presented.Nobody was promising nationwide rollouts tomorrow. Nobody was claiming they’d solved every edge case. Instead, the messaging was about specific cities, defined use cases, controlled environments, and gradual expansion.That’s usually a sign that a technology is moving from hype into execution.Another subtle but important shift was how central AI has become to these discussions. This wasn’t just about sensors and cameras anymore. The real differentiator is the intelligence stack — how well these systems can perceive the world, make decisions in real time, and handle complexity.That’s where companies like Nvidia come in. CES featured a lot of talk about what Nvidia calls “physical AI” — AI that doesn’t just generate text or images, but actually interacts with the physical world. And funny enough, this is something we actually spoke about quite a while ago in our breakthrough report about The EI Era.The new era of technology we find ourselves in where AI is now “jumping out of the screens” and into the physical world.Now I could go on for hours about that in today’s DD, but I don’t have to!Because we recorded an exclusive video on it, which you can watch right here.It’s really fascinating what the future of AI… or “embodied Intelligence” (EI) has to offer us. So make sure you get ALL the important details about which companies will lead the charge here.Now robotaxis are one of the clearest examples of this. They’re essentially mobile robots making split-second decisions in messy, unpredictable environments.And that raises an important point about why the robotaxi race matters now.This isn’t just an automotive story. It’s a convergence story.It sits at the intersection of AI, robotics, semiconductors, mapping, cloud infrastructure, energy efficiency, and regulation. Whoever wins here isn’t just building a car — they’re building a platform.That’s also why the competitive dynamics are so interesting.Some players are trying to own the full stack. Others are forming alliances. Some are betting on purpose-built vehicles, while others are adapting existing platforms. Some want to sell autonomy as a service, while others want to own the entire mobility experience.There isn’t one obvious winner yet.But CES made one thing clear: this is no longer theoretical.The race has moved out of the lab and into the streets.From an investor’s perspective, that changes how you think about timelines. It also changes where value might accrue. The winners won’t necessarily be the loudest names or the ones making the boldest claims. They’ll be the ones that can actually deploy safely, scale economically, and integrate into existing transportation ecosystems.That’s a much harder problem than building a demo.And it’s why the robotaxi wars are worth paying attention to now — not because everything is about to flip overnight, but because we’re finally seeing the early contours of how this market might actually take shape.CES didn’t tell us who wins.But it did tell us the race is real.And once a race becomes real, the investment implications tend to follow faster than most people expect.All the best,Simmy Adelman, Editor-in-Chief Behind the Markets  Our mailing address is: Behind the Markets, LLC 4260 NW 1st Avenue, Suite 55 Boca Raton, FL 33431 Copyright © 2026 Behind the Markets, LLC, All rights reserved. You’re receiving this email as part of your subscription to Behind the Markets. For more information about our privacy practices, please review our Privacy Policy or our Legal Notices. 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