How many billions did Tesla lose when they started? How many years of losing billions before Tesla started making a profit? Tesla almost went bankrupt during the Model 3 ramp up. It is common for businesses to lose money in the beginning while they work to scale up the business. Robotaxis are a completely new business. Autonomous driving is a new technology. It is not finished yet. So yes, I expect Waymo and others to lose billions in the beginning, probably for a few years to come. That is not a sign of failure, it is the price of developing a new technology. But eventually, Waymo will absolutely be profitable, when the tech is more mature and the costs come down, and they have thousands of robotaxis running 24/7 in multiple cities. It will happen. What we are seeing now is just the beginning of the ramp up!
By the way, I am way more bullish on Waymo than I am on Cruise. Waymo has better tech and is showing they can scale faster than Cruise. Waymo testing driverless in SF and downtown Phoenix, including the airport, with plans to connect the downtown area with the Chandler area, not to mention the recent announcement of their partnership with Uber Freight, makes me more confident in Waymo's ability to scale and commercialize their autonomous driving. Cruise only has a very limited driverless service in SF with some autonomous deliveries (with safety drivers) in Scottsdale, AZ. Cruise has not shown an ability to scale yet.