Uber, along with partners Lucid and Nuro, unveiled at CES a vehicle that will be used for its global robotaxi service and showed the Uber-designed in-cabin rider experience for the first time.

Autonomous on-road testing began in December to aid development and validation of the robotaxi service ahead of its expected launch in the San Francisco Bay Area later this year. Nuro is leading the testing using robotaxi engineering prototypes supervised by autonomous vehicle operators, beginning in the Bay Area.

At the show, visitors got a first look at the robotaxi, as well as the in-cabin rider experience. Highlights included a sensor array featuring high-resolution cameras, solid-state lidar sensors and radars that provides 360-degree perception. These sensors are integrated throughout the Lucid Gravity’s body and in the purpose-built roof-mounted halo, which is a low-profile module to increase visibility while preserving the vehicle’s signature design.

Halo-mounted integrated LEDs help riders identify the correct vehicle, display rider initials, and provide clear status updates from pickup through dropoff.

The intuitive in-ride experience builds on the comfort of the all-electric Lucid Gravity, with interactive screens that let riders personalise their autonomous journey from heated-seat and climate controls to music, as well as options to contact support, or request the vehicle pull-over.

In-vehicle visualisation shows what the robotaxi sees and its planned path in real time, including manoeuvres such as yielding to pedestrians, slowing at traffic lights, changing lanes and dropping off a passenger.

A versatile, spacious layout has configurations that comfortably fit up to six passengers and offer generous luggage space.

The compute technology is based on Nvidia Drive AGX Thor, supporting real-time AI processing and system integration required for autonomous driving.

“The debut of our production intent robotaxi with Lucid and Uber is a significant milestone on our path to delivering autonomy at scale,” said Dave Ferguson, co-CEO of Nuro. “By bringing together Nuro’s proven level-four autonomy, Lucid’s advanced vehicle architecture and Uber’s global reach, we’re building a robotaxi service designed for real-world operations and long-term growth.”

Autonomous on-road testing is part of Nuro’s safety and validation framework, honed over years of commercial autonomous deployments. The programme evaluates dozens of critical capabilities across the full autonomy stack including Nuro’s end-to-end AI foundation model, which blends AI with clear, verifiable safety logic for comfortable, reliable performance. In addition to on-road testing, the programme includes closed-course testing and simulation to validate performance across a wide range of scenarios.

“Uber is proud to partner with Lucid and Nuro to bring a state-of-the-art robotaxi to market later this year,” said Sarfraz Maredia from Uber (www.uber.com). “By combining leading expertise in electric vehicles, autonomy and ride hailing, we’re building a unique new option for affordable and scalable autonomous rides in the San Francisco Bay Area and beyond.”

Kay Stepper, vice president at Lucid, added: “Our robotaxi programme with Uber and Nuro is a key part of how Lucid is leveraging its technology to create a more sustainable future of mobility that is widely accessible. Our engineering, range and interior comfort offers a unique platform and, when combined with Nuro’s technology and Uber’s scale, we are collectively building an experience like no other.”

Pending final validation, the production intent robotaxi is expected to start production at Lucid’s Arizona factory later this year. Lucid (wearelucidgroup.com) is a Silicon Valley-based technology company focused on creating advanced EVs.

Nuro (www.nuro.ai) is a physical AI company building a universal autonomy platform that extends to all vehicle types, applications and roads. Its scalable AI driver, the Nuro Driver, and customisable SDK, the Nuro Toolkit, enable automakers, mobility companies and logistics providers to scale autonomy responsibly across a range of applications, vehicles and geographies.