Calacanis Says Waymo Could Buy Lucid or Rivian Over Its Chinese-Made Car Supply

what happened

Jason Calacanis, an early Uber investor, has predicted that Alphabet's Waymo will acquire Lucid Group (LCID) or Rivian Automotive (RIVN). He made the remark on X, pointing to the company's dependence on Chinese-made vehicles as it expands its robotaxi fleet. The information comes from Stocktwits.

The comments followed a New York Post report that Waymo had ordered thousands of Zeekr vehicles, a brand within China's Geely group, which raised national-security concerns on Capitol Hill. Calacanis said such an arrangement is not illegal yet, but with tariffs above 100% it becomes uneconomic and looks bad: "They will buy Lucid or Rivian."

Semafor, citing people familiar with the matter, reported that Waymo plans to grow its fleet from roughly 4,000 vehicles to 8,000 by the end of 2026 and to 20,000 by the end of 2027. The company closed a $5 billion term loan earlier this month after raising $16 billion in equity this year. Uber has pledged to purchase a minimum of 35,000 Lucid cars, while its Rivian agreement begins with 10,000 R2 SUVs.

why it matters

For Lucid and Rivian, their ties to Uber's robotaxi programs make takeover speculation relevant to investors, though predictions of this kind rarely change the outlook on their own. The more important factor is the combination of tariff costs and political scrutiny of Chinese vehicles, which could affect the economics of Waymo's fleet plans.

market impact

Lucid, Rivian: takeover speculation may draw attention to their shares; Uber: exposure to its robotaxi partner deals

tags

instruments