Kalanick bets on industrial AI with Atoms, eyeing robotaxis and beyond

Travis Kalanick returns to the mobility scene with Atoms, a startup billed as an 'industrial AI' company that has raised about $1.7 billion and is aggressively hiring to build autonomous-vehicle tech led by Anthony Levandowski; Atoms has discussed using its software for Uber's rideshare network but says it’s not aiming to dominate the robotaxi market, instead pursuing AI and robotics across sectors like construction and mining with Uber as a partner and backers including Andreessen Horowitz and Saudi Arabia's PIF.