Waymo doubles spending on lobbying in robotaxi battle with Uber
Waymo doubles spending on lobbying in robotaxi battle with Uber
Waymo 在与 Uber 的自动驾驶出租车之争中将游说支出翻倍
Waymo has sharply increased its lobbying spending as it seeks to persuade US regulators to clear a path for fully autonomous taxi services, intensifying its battle with rival Uber over the future of robotaxis. The Alphabet-owned company spent more than $1 million between April and June on lobbying the federal government, more than double its outlay a year earlier, according to filings. That put Waymo’s spending close to Uber’s and well ahead of rivals including Amazon’s Zoox and Tesla.
Waymo 大幅增加了游说支出，试图说服美国监管机构为全自动驾驶出租车服务扫清障碍，这加剧了其与竞争对手 Uber 在自动驾驶出租车未来发展上的博弈。根据备案文件显示，这家 Alphabet 旗下的公司在 4 月至 6 月期间花费了超过 100 万美元用于游说联邦政府，是去年同期支出的两倍多。这使得 Waymo 的游说支出接近 Uber，并远超亚马逊旗下的 Zoox 和特斯拉等竞争对手。
The rise in lobbying comes as Waymo and Uber push competing visions for the future of ride-hailing. Waymo wants a faster route to fully driverless commercial services, while Uber is advocating a staggered rollout in which robotaxis operate alongside human drivers. Their diverging legislative strategies have contributed to their relationship souring. The FT reported last month that Waymo was exploring options to exit its Uber partnership in Austin and Atlanta, where the ride-hailing group operates its services. “They’ve both stepped up lobbying and are pushing up against each other, which now appears to be hastening their divorce,” said Walter Piecyk, an analyst at LightShed Partners.
游说活动的增加正值 Waymo 和 Uber 对网约车的未来提出相互竞争的愿景之际。Waymo 希望加快实现全无人驾驶商业服务的步伐，而 Uber 则主张分阶段推广，即让自动驾驶出租车与人类驾驶员共同运营。双方在立法策略上的分歧导致了彼此关系的恶化。据《金融时报》上月报道，Waymo 正在探索退出其在奥斯汀和亚特兰大与 Uber 合作的方案，而 Uber 正在这些城市运营其服务。LightShed Partners 的分析师 Walter Piecyk 表示：“双方都加大了游说力度，并相互施压，这似乎正在加速他们的‘分手’。”
Both companies are lobbying aggressively in several US states and Washington, DC, after pushback stalled their expansion to markets including New York and Chicago, as politicians and labour groups warn the technology could displace drivers and undercut existing services. In the first six months of 2026, Waymo increased its spending by 93 percent from the year before to slightly more than $2 million. It has called for a federal framework to ease the rollout of robotaxis. In May, it hired law firm Greenberg Traurig to lobby on its behalf, adding to a roster of several other Washington firms.
在纽约和芝加哥等市场的扩张因遭到抵制而停滞后，两家公司都在美国多个州和华盛顿特区积极进行游说，因为政界人士和劳工组织警告称，这项技术可能会取代司机并削弱现有服务。2026 年上半年，Waymo 的游说支出比去年同期增长了 93%，达到略高于 200 万美元。该公司呼吁建立一个联邦框架，以促进自动驾驶出租车的推广。今年 5 月，它聘请了律师事务所 Greenberg Traurig 代表其进行游说，加入了华盛顿其他几家游说公司的行列。
At the local level, the robotaxi operator has outspent both Uber and Zoox in lobbying legislators in the District of Columbia. It has pressed local regulators to allow robotaxi services in the nation’s capital, including by inviting residents earlier this year to write in support of its rollout. In New York state, Waymo has spent more than half a million dollars so far this year—more than double Uber’s lobbying spend—as it seeks a foothold in one of the largest taxi markets. Its lobbying in the state intensified after Governor Kathy Hochul earlier this year walked back proposals that would have allowed autonomous vehicle companies to run services across most of the state. Waymo offered to set up a $20 million fund to support drivers affected by the technology’s deployment, according to people familiar with the matter. In New Jersey, it has engaged lawmakers who are exploring a three-year pilot program to test deployments.
在地方层面，这家自动驾驶出租车运营商在华盛顿特区的立法游说支出超过了 Uber 和 Zoox。它一直在向当地监管机构施压，要求在首都开展自动驾驶出租车服务，包括在今年早些时候邀请居民写信支持其推广计划。在纽约州，Waymo 今年迄今已花费超过 50 万美元——是 Uber 游说支出的两倍多——试图在这一最大的出租车市场之一站稳脚跟。在州长凯西·霍楚尔（Kathy Hochul）今年早些时候撤回了允许自动驾驶汽车公司在全州大部分地区运营服务的提案后，Waymo 在该州的游说活动进一步加强。据知情人士透露，Waymo 提议设立一项 2000 万美元的基金，以支持受该技术部署影响的司机。在新泽西州，它已与正在探索三年试点项目以测试部署的立法者进行了接触。
Waymo said in a statement that it was advocating for the rollout of autonomous vehicles and was not pursuing measures that would limit competitors or “prescribe” how the technology was deployed. Uber, meanwhile, has been racing to make up lost ground in AVs after abandoning its in-house self-driving effort in 2020, committing more than $10 billion over the past year through equity stakes and robotaxi fleet agreements. The ride-hailing group has warned several Democratic-led states against a carte blanche rollout and has instead lobbied for so-called hybrid networks that route rides to both human drivers and autonomous vehicles. In New Jersey, Uber lobbyists have proposed that any platform offering robotaxi services also use human drivers for at least 85 percent of all rides during a three-year pilot program.
Waymo 在一份声明中表示，它正在倡导自动驾驶汽车的推广，并没有寻求限制竞争对手或“规定”技术部署方式的措施。与此同时，Uber 在 2020 年放弃内部自动驾驶研发后，一直在竞相弥补在自动驾驶领域的落后，过去一年通过股权投资和自动驾驶车队协议投入了超过 100 亿美元。该网约车集团已警告几个民主党领导的州不要进行“全盘放开”式的推广，而是游说建立所谓的“混合网络”，将行程分配给人类驾驶员和自动驾驶汽车。在新泽西州，Uber 的游说者提议，在三年试点期间，任何提供自动驾驶出租车服务的平台，其所有行程中至少有 85% 必须由人类驾驶员完成。
Critics have accused Uber of seeking regulatory capture by attempting to keep rides flowing through its platform as it grapples with rising竞争. Uber has said it is false that they were “anti-AV or seeking to slow AV deployment.” It said hybrid networks “get the technology to consumers sooner while giving policymakers a practical framework to manage the transition.”
批评人士指责 Uber 试图通过将其平台作为行程流量的唯一入口来寻求“监管俘获”，以应对日益激烈的竞争。Uber 表示，称其“反对自动驾驶或试图减缓自动驾驶部署”是不实的。该公司称，混合网络“能让消费者更快地用上这项技术，同时也为政策制定者提供了一个管理过渡的实用框架。”