I’m an Uber and Lyft driver who’s worried Tesla’s robotaxis will take ride-hailing jobs

But that is risky, especially if drivers choose to get car financing. That would be bad for those who did want to operate their own fleet. One of the main reasons I’m an Uber and Lyft driver is to be debt-free. I would be locked into car repayments if the fleet didn’t work out.

Operating fleets might also provide a way for drivers to ride the wave. Uber changed the taxi industry, and I think we’re on the cusp of another wave of change with robotaxis. So, either drivers will be able to ride the wave through their own fleets, or they will need to ensure they’re financially able to do something else.

A Tesla-Uber partnership is unlikely

It could also be bad for drivers if Tesla partners with Uber to offer driverless rides on its platform. However, I’m not convinced that would happen because I think Tesla operates like Amazon; both want to control each part of the business, as that’s how you keep costs low.

I think Uber wants to be the central hub for all transportation, even if that means it eventually replaces human drivers entirely.

There will always be a desire for human connection, but I think people will weigh the cost versus benefit when choosing to take a driverless trip.

It could be cheaper for customers to go with a robotaxi, though. Even Elon said that the cost to operate a Cybercab will be around 20 cents per mile over time.

If Tesla allows us to get passengers from its platform and its own app, where we could enter custom pick-up and drop-off times and control the price, I think that would be better for drivers.