Uber Is Giving Riders EV-Only Choice Through Uber Green

Uber users will soon be able to choose electric-only vehicles when requesting a ride. Through the Uber Green option in the app, riders can choose EVs over gas-powered vehicles, yet the wait time will be a little longer.

Customers in several major U.S. cities, including New York City, Los Angeles, and Las Vegas, will have the all-electric Uber Green option available. Internationally, it will become available throughout France as well as cities across Australia, including Sydney and Melbourne.

“After launching Uber Green with hybrids and EVs around the world, we now have enough EV drivers on our platform to make it an EV-only option in 40+ cities globally,” said Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi, per FOX Business. “Riders will be able to choose an EV for about the same price as UberX.”

To do its part to lower emissions, Uber has committed to going all-electric by 2040. The ride-sharing company has set aside $800 million to help drivers make the switch to EVs, which includes discounts on purchased or leased battery-powered vehicles through select automakers.

Uber’s AI Assistant Encourages EV Adoption

The Uber app will also get an AI assistant early next year. The chatbot will answer questions related to purchasing an electric vehicle alongside range and charging information.

“Going electric is a big decision, and drivers have lots of questions. That’s why we’re announcing an AI assistant in the driver app — powered by OpenAI’s GPT-4o — to help drivers get answers to every EV question under the sun,” noted Khosrowshahi.

To take the green initiative a step further, Uber is introducing “premium EV pop-ups” in Los Angeles, Miami, Dallas, and London. These give riders a unique opportunity to experience a ride in high-end electric vehicles like the Rivian R1 and Lotus Eletre.

After years of losses and internal turbulence, Uber announced it finally made money in 2023. The company reported a $1.1 billion profit for the year versus losing $1.8 billion in 2022.