As autonomous ride-hailing expands across the U.S. with Tela’s Robotaxi service and Alphabet’s Waymo, traditional gig platforms are working to protect their turf. Rather than focusing solely on vehicle development, legacy ride-hailing networks are turning toward legislative channels to keep driverless fleets tied to their existing apps.
According to a report from the Financial Times, Uber has been actively lobbying state and federal policymakers to enforce mandatory hybrid networks, where human drivers and autonomous vehicles operate on the same platform.
The Push for 85% Human Drivers in New Jersey
In New Jersey, state lawmakers are evaluating a three-year pilot program designed to establish an official regulatory framework for testing and deploying driverless vehicles. However, Uber lobbyists are proposing a major add-on to the legislation: requiring any platform offering robotaxi services to have human drivers handle at least 85% of all rides during the pilot program.
If adopted, this rule would force companies like Tesla and Waymo that already have dedicated autonomous rideshare apps to route their rides through Uber and similar third-party platforms that maintain large human driver pools.
For Tesla, this proposal comes on top of existing hurdles in the legislation that would essentially ban its Robotaxi vehicles from New Jersey unless it adds more sensors to them. In its current form, the draft requires commercial driverless vehicles to be equipped with at least two distinct sensor modalities (like LiDAR and radar) alongside cameras, effectively ruling out Tesla’s camera-only.
Beyond sensor demands, the bill requires operators to:
Complete 50,000 miles of supervised in-state testing with a human safety driver.
Submit complete safety certifications, proof of insurance, and law enforcement interaction plans.
Report all vehicle collisions directly to the New Jersey Department of Transportation within five days.
Tacking on a requirement to operate exclusively on a hybrid network would present a major obstacle for direct-to-consumer models. Tesla has historically resisted third-party platforms, deciding against operating its Robotaxi vehicles on Uber in favor of running rides through its own native app.
Growing Friction Between Waymo and Uber
Uber’s legislative push is also causing strain with its current partners. The Financial Times report revealed that Waymo is exploring options to exit its operating deal with Uber. Waymo has notified Uber that it intends to launch independently, complete with its own app, in key markets like Austin and Atlanta when its contract permits in January 2028.
The relationship between the two companies has deteriorated over service quality and routing disputes. Waymo questioned Uber’s vehicle cleanliness and routing management after dozens of cars clogged an Atlanta cul-de-sac. Uber, meanwhile, has raised concerns over weather-related vehicle unavailability and safety incidents, including instances where Waymo’s autonomous cars passed stopped school buses in Austin.
Standing Ground Against Regulatory Pressure
These regulatory battles come as Tesla accelerates its own autonomous vehicle deployment, recently crossing 380,000 unsupervised Robotaxi miles. It has also announced expansion plans into new states following recent commercial launches. Tesla’s Robotaxi network began offering fully unsupervised rides in three new cities just this month — first in Miami, and more recently in Orlando and Tampa.
While Tesla’s overall autonomous fleet is only a fraction of Waymo’s, its camera-only Model Y robotaxis are already offering paid rides with no safety drivers or monitors onboard in at least six markets and expanding fast. Meanwhile, Tesla has also started publicly testing the steering wheel-less Cybercabs that will replace the Model Y as the workhorse of its Robotaxi service. As purpose-built autonomous vehicles prepare for mass production and public deployment, navigating state-level legislative hurdles will remain a central focus for Tesla’s direct-to-consumer Robotaxi network.
