WEBVTT - Uber and Zoox CEOs Talk Robotaxi Partnership

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<v Speaker 1>Bloomberg Audio Studios, podcasts, radio news.

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<v Speaker 2>Uber will let customers hail robotaxis from Amazon's Zekes starting

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<v Speaker 2>in Las Vegas this summer. For more on the partnership,

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<v Speaker 2>Bloomberg Texts Ed Ludlow is joined by the CEOs of

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<v Speaker 2>both companies. Ed.

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<v Speaker 1>Yeah, thank you, Matt.

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<v Speaker 3>We're talking about the Zokes purpose built robots, actually no

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<v Speaker 3>driver controls, no steering wheel, no pedals, inward facing seats,

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<v Speaker 3>starting in Vegas this summer, Los Angeles next year. And

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<v Speaker 3>we're delighted to have Ubercio dark Ostrasahi and i Sheha

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<v Speaker 3>Evans of Zokes with us. And actually I've been fortunate

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<v Speaker 3>to spend a lot of time with you in the

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<v Speaker 3>last year, and you've always described Zukes as vertically integrated.

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<v Speaker 3>Control the stack, own the vehicle, own the app, own

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<v Speaker 3>the service. You're going with a partner. What's changed That

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<v Speaker 3>hasn't changed.

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<v Speaker 4>We're doing that, and I've also told you that would

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<v Speaker 4>be practical about our commercial deplointment. This is a big

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<v Speaker 4>market and so talk to Betra and in Las Vegas

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<v Speaker 4>and LA We're really looking forward to bringing our experience

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<v Speaker 4>and sort of this way to ride to the Uber platform.

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<v Speaker 4>In addition, to also being available.

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<v Speaker 1>The way to write is interesting.

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<v Speaker 3>You know, Uber is not a ride, It is a platform,

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<v Speaker 3>a marketplace for increasingly different kinds of rides. What is it, Dara,

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<v Speaker 3>that you think you can help zooks do that. I

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<v Speaker 3>guess they wouldn't otherwise be able to do on their own.

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<v Speaker 5>Well, we bring enormous distribution on a global basis, and

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<v Speaker 5>I think that there's this narrative of its either or

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<v Speaker 5>you know, either you go direct to your customer or

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<v Speaker 5>you go through a platform. And the fact is, if

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<v Speaker 5>you look, for example, on Uber eats, you have some

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<v Speaker 5>of the best brands in the world, whether it's a

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<v Speaker 5>McDonald's or a Starbucks or Chipotle, having a direct interaction

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<v Speaker 5>with customers through their own apps, but also using the

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<v Speaker 5>platform to expand their distribution. And I see the same

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<v Speaker 5>thing with Zoos as well. You know, Zeus is on

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<v Speaker 5>his way to create one of the best brands in

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<v Speaker 5>the business and transportation.

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<v Speaker 1>You experienced recently right you went.

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<v Speaker 5>It's a great experience, it's a purpose built vehicle, and

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<v Speaker 5>to have that experience on Uber, we think will only

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<v Speaker 5>magnify what Zous is bringing to the market.

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<v Speaker 3>But this is small scale in the first instance, right,

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<v Speaker 3>you know in Las Vegas, and then where you're already active,

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<v Speaker 3>and then and then La that The mechanics of it

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<v Speaker 3>are interesting, right, because as a rider, you are not

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<v Speaker 3>guaranteed in the first instance, that you can choose a Zookes.

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<v Speaker 3>It's algorithmic. It depends on the circumstances for you to have.

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<v Speaker 3>I think the language uses the opportunity to be matched

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<v Speaker 3>with the Zookes. I guess supply in the first instance,

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<v Speaker 3>is why you've pursued that plan at first?

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<v Speaker 4>Yeah, but really no, because look, it's a platform, it's

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<v Speaker 4>a global platform, it's available. You have all kinds of

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<v Speaker 4>people who show up in Las Vegas. Some might know

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<v Speaker 4>about Zookes, some might not, and the ones who don't

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<v Speaker 4>probably know about Uber. So why not take advantage of that.

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<v Speaker 4>It's really holidays.

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<v Speaker 3>This is early, But would you just explain I guess

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<v Speaker 3>longer term what the business plan is. Is there a

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<v Speaker 3>per ride revenue share agreement? How do you split the

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<v Speaker 3>fare when you're able to charge a fair dara?

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<v Speaker 5>I think for us now, the focus is going to

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<v Speaker 5>be the customer experience. We want to make sure that weather. Obviously,

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<v Speaker 5>the Zukes direct experience is going to be best to breed,

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<v Speaker 5>but also having the experience through Uber is going to

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<v Speaker 5>introduce you to the differentiated experience on zokes as well.

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<v Speaker 5>That's really going to be that's really going to be

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<v Speaker 5>what Aisha and I are focused on. You know, I

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<v Speaker 5>would say at the economics take care of themselves over

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<v Speaker 5>the long term.

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<v Speaker 3>Data is going to be critically important here. So let's

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<v Speaker 3>start a guess, Stara, with what data sets can Uber

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<v Speaker 3>provide Zekes that help them with scale and data sharing

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<v Speaker 3>that you've got in place.

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<v Speaker 5>Well, we are certainly going to work with zekes in

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<v Speaker 5>terms of traffic patterns, and now zeus is going to

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<v Speaker 5>have access to that data directly as well. But I

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<v Speaker 5>think the combination of the traffic patterns that we see

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<v Speaker 5>and the customers that we see, whether local or international,

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<v Speaker 5>along with zukes's proprietary data, I think is going to

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<v Speaker 5>help Zookes be even more efficient as an entity going forward.

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<v Speaker 4>Yeah, and I'll add to that also the experience of

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<v Speaker 4>dealing with things or just starting to deal with large events,

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<v Speaker 4>things that Uber knows how to do in their sleep,

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<v Speaker 4>and we'll essentially speed up our knowledge of doing that.

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<v Speaker 3>And also speed up deployment. You know, you've always been

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<v Speaker 3>very careful and cautious. I think is the wording that

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<v Speaker 3>you've used, But is there now a sort of a

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<v Speaker 3>different approach that working with you gives you to get

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<v Speaker 3>the zukes purpose built vehicle. We can bring it up

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<v Speaker 3>on the screen again. You know, it's a unique form

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<v Speaker 3>factor in this country. And of course there was a

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<v Speaker 3>big niz in news yesterday. But what's again the same

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<v Speaker 3>question was changed in your ability to do that?

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<v Speaker 4>So I think the last time you asked me the question,

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<v Speaker 4>I said, look, first, we want to be ready. Our

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<v Speaker 4>approach will always be cautious and and scale from there.

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<v Speaker 4>What's changed is that we're deploying in Vegas. We know

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<v Speaker 4>the market very well, we understand the patterns, and we

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<v Speaker 4>think that partnering with with with their Uber and the

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<v Speaker 4>team at Uber will really help us not just bring

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<v Speaker 4>the differential, differentiated customer experience, but speed up how you deploy,

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<v Speaker 4>how you operate on a daily basis, and we're looking

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<v Speaker 4>forward to that.

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<v Speaker 2>Dari.

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<v Speaker 1>Uber shares are up two percent.

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<v Speaker 3>But when the news hit, you know, in pre market

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<v Speaker 3>there was a really positive reception to this.

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<v Speaker 1>What do you what do you make of that?

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<v Speaker 3>You know it's consistent with what you've already done. Capital

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<v Speaker 3>like model partner with with both automakers, the technology stack

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<v Speaker 3>and software in well.

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<v Speaker 5>We think autonomous represents the future of transportation right it's

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<v Speaker 5>it's safer ultimately than human beings. We think it will

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<v Speaker 5>make transportation available to more people. So this is just

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<v Speaker 5>another step in our direction of open platform for both

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<v Speaker 5>human drivers and robot drivers, who are safe, who are

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<v Speaker 5>best to breed. And I think Zekes represents one of

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<v Speaker 5>the top brands and top technologies and top experiences in

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<v Speaker 5>the industry. And we're very proud to partner up with

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<v Speaker 5>Zoukes and we're really looking forward to growing together.

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<v Speaker 3>So what did you learn from your ride in Las

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<v Speaker 3>Vegas as a market?

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<v Speaker 5>You know, I think that obviously the Zookes experience is

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<v Speaker 5>I think going to play in any market, but Las

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<v Speaker 5>Vegas especially. It's a social place to go. People go

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<v Speaker 5>to Las Vegas in groups, et cetera. And one of

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<v Speaker 5>the what was clear to me with Zekes is a

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<v Speaker 5>differentiated experience in terms of the setup. It is a

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<v Speaker 5>purpose built vehicle. It feels when you're inside, it feels

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<v Speaker 5>so big and so generous in terms of the space,

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<v Speaker 5>but then actually the vehicle itself is quite efficient, so

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<v Speaker 5>for me it was very interesting. I think Zekes is

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<v Speaker 5>unique in building out this kind of vertical stack purpose

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<v Speaker 5>built vehicle, and for me, the quality of the ride

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<v Speaker 5>was absolutely on display for me.

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<v Speaker 3>So you are a member of Amazon's leadership team otherwise

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<v Speaker 3>known as the S team. You're actually ranked number one

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<v Speaker 3>in alphabetical order. I checked a lot of questions I

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<v Speaker 3>get for you. Is the capital plan? You know, if

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<v Speaker 3>you can get some more money from Amazon to accelerate

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<v Speaker 3>your progress. Amazon's been active in the bomb market this week.

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<v Speaker 3>What can you tell us about your access to capital?

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<v Speaker 4>Amazon has been great. We're super happy to have them

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<v Speaker 4>as a parent. Capital is not something I worry about.

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<v Speaker 4>I worry about executing, delivering. Now that we're entering this

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<v Speaker 4>commercial phase, this promise of a safer, keener, more enjoyable

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<v Speaker 4>future on the road with our purpose built vehicle that

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<v Speaker 4>really gives you this delightful experience is really what we're

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<v Speaker 4>focused on. I don't worry about capital at all. I

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<v Speaker 4>worry about delivering.

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<v Speaker 3>Uberdara is becoming kind of like the neutral marketplace for

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<v Speaker 3>all kinds of av providers, not just in the US,

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<v Speaker 3>but that globally have to ask their for or have

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<v Speaker 3>you held any talks with Tesla about convincing them to

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<v Speaker 3>take their plan, which is a proprietary ride hailing service

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<v Speaker 3>but also purpose built vehicle to the U wrapp.

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<v Speaker 5>We talk with all the various AV providers. Tesla obviously

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<v Speaker 5>isn't at the point now of getting to no vehicle operator,

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<v Speaker 5>but they are testing and their technology is excellent, so

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<v Speaker 5>we're happy to have discussions with them as well as

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<v Speaker 5>other players. But today's about Zooks and we're here to

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<v Speaker 5>celebrate that.

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<v Speaker 3>Uber CEO Darrek Kushra Shahi Ajevin Zook's CEO, here with

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<v Speaker 3>us in the Bloomberg Tech Studio in San Francisco,