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I’m already back from vacation. What did I miss? It turns out that many things, including the end of the Uber-Waymo association in Phoenix. Uber and Waymo still have robotaxi service partnerships in Atlanta and Austin. The question is not Yeahbut when Will these agreements end? But, in my opinion, that’s not the most intriguing question. I’m much more intrigued by how these two companies will perform once the remaining partnerships are finalized.

There is already tension with Uber executives taking not-so-subtle action against Waymo. I hope that once the partnerships end, these thinly veiled criticisms will be replaced by more direct actions. One battleground will be politics, specifically the markets that robotaxi companies seek to gain access to.

This week we saw another interesting development in the autonomous vehicle industry on the federal stage. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration administrator Jonathan Morrison issued a directive to autonomous vehicle developers, stating that it is unacceptable for their vehicles to interfere with first responders or law enforcement.

The Money Quote: “Let me be clear: the inability to adequately detect and respond to such situations represents a functional failure. Emergency scenes are not rare or extreme ‘edge cases.’ As such, NHTSA today calls for action for AV developers and operators to immediately focus their resources on addressing this issue.”

Morrison’s letter never criticizes any robotaxi company and was sent to all AV developers listed in the Department of Transport’s Standing General Order. But it appears Morrison is directing the agency’s ire at Waymo.

A previous TechCrunch investigation found that Waymo, which operates the largest robotaxi fleet in the United States, with vehicles in cities including Los Angeles, Phoenix and San Francisco, has had repeated run-ins with first responders. And just this week, the San Francisco supervisor Bilal Mahmud said it plans to file a letter of inquiry to examine how autonomous vehicles affected public transportation services and emergency services following a July 4 fireworks display that resulted in a mass lockdown. Local media reported that numerous Waymo robotaxis had to be towed after running out of power during the long traffic jam.

Morrison’s letter has seriousness. But will there be substantial consequences for AV developers? It’s hard to know at this point. For now, NHTSA has required companies to submit “solutions” to the agency by the end of the month.

One more news from the feds. Take a look at the new Regulatory Plan and Unified Agenda 2026, which was updated last week. It contains a long list of proposed changes to the requirements of the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS), which govern vehicle design and equipment requirements. These proposed changes could help autonomous vehicle companies like tesla and zooxthat are developing vehicles without steering wheels, pedals or other features needed in human-driven cars.

a little bird

Do you have any advice for us? Email Kirsten Korosec at kirsten.korosec@techcrunch.com or my sign at kkorosec.07, or email Sean O’Kane at sean.okane@techcrunch.com.

Offers!

We normally focus on risky deals, but this week I wanted to highlight rivian and the sale of 86.25 million shares of Class A common stock at a price of $15.50 each (that includes an additional 11.25 million in additional shares that the underwriters elected to purchase).

In total, Rivian said it expects to raise $1.32 billion in new capital. The increase comes at a notable time for the electric vehicle maker. The company began delivering its new R2 SUV last month and recently raised its sales forecast for 2026. The company said it now expects to deliver between 65,000 and 70,000 vehicles after beating its own expectations in the second quarter due to strong quarter-over-quarter growth in EDV and R1, along with the introduction of R2 deliveries.

The company did not explain the reason for the increase. But as a reminder, Rivian is not yet profitable and increasing production of the R2, or any vehicle, is not cheap!

Other offers that caught my attention…

BidbusA Los Angeles-based startup that created a digital marketplace where multiple dealers can bid on a car, raised $15 million in a Series A funding round led by Ibex Investors. Mucker Capital, FJ Labs, Motley Fool Ventures, Data Point Capital, Walter Ventures and Yossi Levi of Car Dealership Guy also participated.

Lyft said it plans to acquire Serveo’s bike-sharing business in Spain. Terms were not disclosed, but the transportation company said it is expected to close this year.

TaiSana UK battery startup, raised £4.65 million in a seed funding round co-led by Eos Advisory and Midlands Engine Investment Fund II. InnoEnergy, AFI Ventures, EverQuest Capital Partners, Exergon, Heartfelt Ventures, Adeline Arts & Science, Techmind, angel investor François Badelon and matching funding from Innovate UK also participated.

Notable readings and other tidbits

AssuranceAmericaAn American insurance provider, confirmed a data breach that affected the personal information and driver’s license numbers of 6.9 million people, making it the largest known breach of American driver’s license information this year.

Beta Technologiesthe developer of electric vehicle takeoff and landing, completed operational flights conducted under the new eVTOL Integration Pilot Program of the US Department of Transportation and the Federal Aviation Administration. The flights covered about 275 nautical miles covering Virginia and Maryland.

Lifelong followers of tesla I’ll remember the heady days when Elon Musk fought several short sellers of the company’s stock. Musk is more polarized than ever, and one ETF creator has found a way to tap into that negative sentiment with two new anti-Elon ETFs.

G.M. The Chevrolet brand built an all-American EV truck. Journalist Tim De Chant asks: Why doesn’t anyone believe it?

Mana AeroThe Irish-based autonomous drone delivery startup is growing in the United States with a factory and operations center in Tulsa, Oklahoma, which it says will employ 1,000 people in the coming years.

Automatic whiteboard was associated with Crayola offer your EV and SUV customers vehicle wraps in five crayon colors. (Reminder: The base Slate EV vehicle is not painted. Instead, it comes in a gray composite material that can be customized with a vehicle wrap. The company has hundreds of options to choose from.)

One more thing…

TechCrunch Podcast Construction mode It just launched its third season and it is a success. Build mode is presented by Isabelle Johannessen, who runs TechCrunch’s Startup Battlefield program. Unlike Equity, the TC podcast I co-host with Anthony Ha and Sean O’Kane, Build Mode is designed to help early-stage founders.

The new season starts with Pioneer companies founder and managing partner Carlos Hudsonwho talks about what early-stage founders should know before launching their first institutional round.

Check it out: The New Rules of Early-Stage Fundraising with Charles Hudson.