Autonomous trucking startup Waabi raises $750 million to expand into robotaxis

Uber also committed to invest $250 million in Waabi to exclusively bring robotaxis, powered by the startup’s self-driving systems, to the ride-hailing company’s platform.

Autonomous trucking startup Waabi has raised $750 million in a new round of venture funding to expand into the robotaxi market, the company announced Wednesday.

Waabi’s series C round is led by Khosla Ventures and G2 Venture Partners, the startup announced Wednesday. The deal is one of the largest single rounds ever raised by a Canadian tech startup.

In addition to Waabi’s series C, Uber has committed to invest $250 million into the startup based on future milestones. With Uber’s additional funding, Waabi will exclusively deploy at least 25,000 autonomous vehicles via the ride-hail platform. Urtasun was previously a chief scientist at Uber’s Advanced Technologies Group that worked on AV technology.

Ranking 35 on CNBC’s 2025 Disruptor 50 list, Waabi is based in Toronto with some operations in Texas.

Founder and CEO Raquel Urtasun told CNBC the new funding will enable the company to adapt its “physical AI” to develop driverless systems that can be deployed in new locations, conditions, and form factors with a high level of safety relatively quickly.

“For me, it’s been 16 years in self-driving,” she said. “But this is — it’s finally here, scale is here. And the next couple of years, it’s going to be amazing.”

Uber and Waabi declined to disclose which car manufacturer would partner with them to develop robotaxis, but Urtasun said a deal is set to be agreed in the coming months.