Tesla and Musk are synonymous. Most Americans cannot name the chairperson of Waymo or Volkswagen or Uber. For better or worse, that means that if one of those people wears a dumb t-shirt or makes a controversially questionable arm motion (unless they do so in a very public setting with the entire world watching), we're unlikely to know or care.

The partnership builds on Uber’s strategy of integrating others’ autonomous systems into its ride-hail network, adding to existing deals with Waymo, WeRide, and Avride.

Volkswagen of America and Uber on Thursday unveiled an ambitious plan to launch a commercial robotaxi service — using autonomous electric VW ID. BUZZ