Calacanis bought $975,000 in Uber shares, with a $120 target implying 85% upside from his purchase price.
- He bought $1.07 million in Tesla shares, targeting $500, about 40% above his entry price.
- Calacanis also bought $189,000 in Netflix shares, with a $90 target implying 43% upside.
- He predicted that Tesla and Uber will together capture 80% of the autonomous vehicle market.
Early Uber Technologies, Inc. investor Jason Calacanis is betting on both Tesla and Uber, but his price targets favor the ride-hailing company. He disclosed purchases of $1 million in each stock, with targets implying about 85% upside for Uber and 40% for Tesla from entry prices.
Calacanis’ Bigger Upside Bet On Uber
Calacanis said on X that he bought 15,000 UBER shares at $65, putting the purchase at $975,000. His 12-month target of $120 implies an 85% upside from the entry price. He also bought 3,000 TSLA shares at $357, a purchase worth about $1.07 million. His $500 target implies about 40% upside over the same period.
Although he committed slightly more money to Tesla, his Uber target points to more than twice the upside. At his prices, the Uber shares would generate an $825,000 gain, compared with $429,000 for Tesla. The purchases were made over the past two weeks.
He also bought 3,000 Netflix (NFLX) shares at $63 and set a $90 target, implying about 43% upside. Together, the three purchases total $2.24 million.
When asked whether Tesla’s robotaxi push made him worry about Uber’s long-term prospects, Calacanis laid out a market with room for both. He predicted that Tesla would account for 40% of autonomous vehicles, Uber and its 20 partners for 35%, and Alphabet’s Waymo for 15%.
His investment also depends on the stock’s price: “If Uber was at $100, I wouldn’t make this trade,” he said.
Uber Taps Automakers For Robotaxi Scale
Uber’s network of vehicle and technology partners gives it several routes to expand driverless rides. The company has committed to at least 35,000 Lucid Group (LCID) vehicles, including Gravity SUVs and future Midsize models, for a robotaxi service being developed with Nuro.
Its agreement with Rivian Automotive (RIVN) starts with 10,000 autonomous R2 SUVs, with service expected to launch in San Francisco and Miami in 2028. The deal includes an option for up to 40,000 more vehicles beginning in 2030, alongside plans for Uber to invest up to $1.25 billion in Rivian through 2031, subject to autonomy milestones.
Tesla (TSLA), meanwhile, is expanding its own robotaxi network using Model Y vehicles and its Cybercab. It has begun deploying Cybercabs in Austin and its robotaxi service had accumulated nearly 2 million unsupervised miles by the end of the third quarter.
Calacanis Bets On Autonomy Takeovers
Calacanis’s latest trades follow a broader bet that the autonomous vehicle race will trigger consolidation. Last month, he disclosed small positions in WeRide (WRD), Pony.ai (PONY), Lucid and Rivian, predicting that all four would be acquired within two years. “Consolidation is coming to the autonomous space based on the massive progress that Tesla, Waymo, and Uber are making,” he said.
“I believe these four companies are going to be bought in the next 24 months and I expect, as a group, that I will 2x my investment in under two years.” He called the trades small positions with a one-to-four-year horizon, compared with his usual intention to hold equities for more than a decade.
Calacanis Sees Waymo Buying Lucid Or Rivian
Calacanis has also named a potential buyer for Lucid or Rivian: Waymo. “They will buy Lucid or Rivian,” he predicted while discussing the challenges of expanding a U.S. robotaxi fleet with Chinese-made vehicles.
His comments followed a New York Post report that Waymo had ordered thousands of vehicles from Zeekr, part of China’s Geely group. Calacanis said tariffs and political concerns made the arrangement hard to sustain. “Even if the self-driving tech is from America, there will be reasonable concerns about communist rivals deploying AVs in America,” he said.
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