NHTSA has opened an investigation into Avride, Uber's autonomous vehicle partner, after 16 crashes and one minor injury in Dallas over four months (December 2025–March 2026). The regulator described the vehicles as showing 'excessive assertiveness and insufficient capability,' with incidents including lane-change collisions and failures to stop for stationary objects. Avride, a Nebius subsidiary that inherited Yandex's self-driving technology, launched its robotaxi service in Dallas in December 2025 with Uber backing worth up to $375 million. The crashes raise questions about Uber's platform model — where partners bear safety liability but Uber's brand is exposed — and about Texas's permissive AV regulations that allow deployment without pre-emptive safety standards. The investigation could result in a recall or operational restrictions and may set a regulatory precedent for platform companies deploying third-party autonomous vehicles.
