Uber Founder Kalanick Plots Acquisition of Pony.ai's US Unit — A Stepping Stone for a Return to Autonomous Driving?
Travis Kalanick, the co-founder of Uber, is looking to return to the autonomous driving industry. According to a report by The New York Times, Kalanick is considering the acquisition of the US division of the Chinese autonomous driving company Pony.ai and is currently raising funds for the deal. Surprisingly, even Uber, the company Kalanick once founded and was later ousted from, may potentially cooperate in this transaction.
In this article, we will explain the background of this acquisition drama, the movements of various companies in the autonomous driving industry, and the possibility of Kalanick's comeback.
1. Who is Pony.ai?: An Autonomous Driving Company with US-China Ties
Pony.ai is an autonomous driving startup based in both China and the US that has been gaining attention in recent years. It went public in 2023 and, as of the time of reporting, has a market capitalization of approximately $4.5 billion. The company aims to apply autonomous driving technology to ride-sharing and logistics, and has been conducting test runs in the US market, primarily in California.
1-1. Preparing to Carve Out the US Business
According to reports, Pony.ai had been moving toward selling or spinning off its US division since 2022. It is said that the company has been taking steps to address geopolitical risks, such as "forking" its source code to separate US and Chinese technologies.
2. Kalanick's Goal: A New Challenge for a Return to Autonomous Driving
Since stepping down from Uber in 2017, Kalanick has primarily focused on his ghost kitchen business, "CloudKitchens." However, in recent years, he has shown an increasing interest in the field of robotics, turning his eyes once again to the frontier of autonomous driving.
2-1. "If only we hadn't sold the autonomous driving division..."
At an event in March 2025, Kalanick remarked, "When I was pushed out, Uber was second only to Waymo in autonomous driving progress," adding with a hint of regret, "If we had kept going, we might have had our own autonomous ride-sharing product by now."
3. Uber's Current Position: From In-House Development to Partnership Strategy
After Kalanick's departure, CEO Dara Khosrowshahi, who took the helm at Uber, decided to withdraw from in-house development of autonomous driving technology. In 2018, an Uber autonomous vehicle was involved in a fatal accident involving a pedestrian in Arizona, which heightened concerns regarding safety.
Since then, the autonomous driving division was sold to Aurora, and Uber has shifted its strategy toward becoming a platform through partnerships with external companies such as Waymo.
4. Will Uber Cooperate with Kalanick?
What is noteworthy in this report is that Uber is said to be "potentially willing to cooperate" with Kalanick's acquisition. The two parties have a history of legal battles and it took time to reach a settlement. However, it reveals a realism where past conflicts can be temporarily set aside if business interests align.
5. Future Outlook: What Will Kalanick x Pony.ai Bring to the Industry?
If the acquisition is realized, Kalanick would regain a presence in the mobility sector while continuing to manage CloudKitchens. The independence of Pony.ai in the US is consistent with the context of tightening regulations on Chinese companies, and the move aims to maintain competitiveness while avoiding pressure from government authorities.
Furthermore, by acquiring Pony.ai, Kalanick could once again become a disruptive force in the industry with a strategy aimed at "what comes after ride-sharing."
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