Lucid Group's stock soared 36% on 17 July, closing at £2.32 ($3.12), following a landmark partnership with Uber and Nuro to deploy 20,000 autonomous robotaxis. This move positions Lucid to challenge Tesla and Waymo in the intensifying robotaxi market.

Ross Gerber is pushing back against a partnership between rideshare service Uber Technologies Inc. and automaker Lucid Group Inc.

The autonomous vehicle sector got a jolt on Thursday when Lucid Group (NASDAQ:LCID) announced a three-way partnership with Uber Technologies (NYSE:UBER) and privately held Nuro to deploy at least 20,000 Lucid Gravity SUVs equipped with Nuro's L4 autonomous technology on the Uber (NYSE:UBER) network over the next six years.

Uber will acquire and deploy over 20,000 Lucid Gravity SUVs that will be equipped with autonomous vehicle technology from startup Nuro.

“With recent growth in Austin and California, plus opening in Atlanta with Uber, Waymo now serves more than 700 sq mi across the US,” the company said. According to Waymo, it has driven over 100 million fully autonomous miles without a human behind the wheel.

Waymo more than doubled its robotaxi service area in Austin just days after Tesla showed off a phallic-shaped service area expansion in the city.

Riders can hail a Waymo across 90 square miles of Austin, including neighborhoods like Crestview, Windsor Park and Franklin Park and locations like The Domain and McKinney Falls State Park.

Waymo robotaxis are now available exclusively on the Uber app in Atlanta. It’s the second city after Austin host the companies’ burgeoning partnership.