Uber and Lyft shares tap the brakes on a potential “long-term threat” from Tesla robotaxis

Ride-hailing biggies Uber and Lyft each experienced notable declines Thursday after Tesla CEO Elon Musk said his company is ahead of schedule in its plan to launch its robotaxi service in Austin next month.

Shares of both ride-share companies were down roughly 4% today.

Though recent reporting states that government officials still don’t have the information required to give Tesla’s planned June 12 robotaxi launch the OK, investors appear slightly optimistic — and they see the service as bad news for ride-hailing.

According to a Wedbush Securities note published Thursday, Tesla’s robtaxi rollout “serves as a long-term threat to Uber’s business model.” The firm adds that “Uber’s position may not be as solid as recent stock performance suggests when / if autonomous hits its stride.”

That’s not to say Uber and Lyft are without their own autonomous plans. Uber, in partnership with Waymo, launched driverless rides in Austin back in March, while Lyft has its sights set on Dallas “as soon as 2026” in a partnership with Mobileye.