Tech
Uber is building an autonomous vehicle empire, and here’s every company it’s using to do it
Uber has partnered with — and in some cases made direct investments in — more than 30 autonomous vehicle companies over the past two years. And it’s taking a global approach.
Here, TechCrunch tracks every one of those moves in one place. But first, a bit of history.
Uber was, at one time, developing and testing its own autonomous vehicle (AV) technology. The company, then led by Travis Kalanick, created Uber Advanced Technologies Group (ATG) in 2014 and recruited dozens of researchers from Carnegie Mellon University’s robotics program.
Two years later, Uber acquired Otto, a self-driving truck company founded by former Google self-driving engineer Anthony Levandowski, Lior Ron, Don Burnette (who has since gone on to found Kodiak AI), and Claire Delaunay. Uber also began testing its AVs on public streets in 2016 across California, Pittsburgh, and Arizona.
All of that progress unraveled across three defining moments: Waymo’s trade secrets lawsuit against Uber, the resignation of Kalanick in 2017, and a fatal crash in Tempe, Arizona, in 2018 involving its self-driving Volvo XC90, which struck and killed a pedestrian. (The vehicle was in autonomous mode, and a human safety operator behind the wheel at the time wasn’t paying attention.) Uber suspended its testing and reorganized the program, although it never truly returned to its mission.
After Dara Khosrowshahi took the wheel at Uber, the company went through a reset.
In 2020, Uber walked away from all of its moonshots, including autonomous vehicles, to focus on its core businesses of ride-hailing and delivery using human-driven vehicles. Uber sold Uber ATG to Aurora, Jump to Lime, and Elevate to Joby Aviation. It didn’t completely divest, though. Uber kept equity stakes in all of them.
Just two years later, Uber crept back in and started making AV deals. The deal flow picked up in earnest in 2024. Below is the full list, which TechCrunch will keep updated as Uber makes new moves.
Aurora
Uber has been connected with Aurora since 2020 when, as mentioned above, it sold its Uber ATG unit to the company. Uber received equity in Aurora as part of that deal and still owns that stake. As of this past April, Uber, through its holding company Neben Holdings, owns 325.97 million Aurora Class A shares, representing a 19.7% Class A equity stake and 6.9% voting power, according to SEC filings.
Uber Freight, the logistics business spun out of Uber in 2018, announced in June 2024 a multi-year collaboration with Aurora that expanded upon an existing pilot program. In May 2025, the companies said Aurora’s self-driving trucks had been completing roundtrip hauls between Dallas and Houston via the Uber Freight platform.
Autobrains
In June 2026, the companies announced plans to launch a robotaxi program in Munich, pending regulatory approval. The partnership lacks some details, such as what vehicle will be used. The companies pitched this as an OEM-agnostic model. Vehicles will be equipped with Israel-based Autobrains’ agentic AI driving system, which runs on Nvidia’s Drive Hyperion platform. The robotaxis will be available via Uber’s app.
Avomo
Avomo, a European company that was previously known as Moove Cars, is an autonomous fleet operator partner. Uber actually took a 30% stake in Avomo in 2021.
And while Avomo might not have the same name recognition as other players, it is embedded in Uber’s AV business. For instance, it is the company responsible for managing fleet services such as vehicle cleaning, maintenance, inspections, charging, and depot operations for the Waymo-Uber partnership in Austin. Avomo also handles fleet operations for Uber as part of its robotaxi service agreement with WeRide in Madrid, which was announced in June 2026.
Important note: don’t mistake Avomo (formerly Moove Cars), for Moove, an African company that manages Waymo’s AV fleet in Phoenix.
Avride
Avride, the Yandex spinout now under parent company Nebius Group, announced a multi-year deal with Uber in October 2024 to bring Avride’s sidewalk delivery robots and autonomous vehicles to both Uber’s delivery unit, Uber Eats, and Uber’s ride-hailing app.
In February 2025, Uber shared in its fourth-quarter earnings that Uber Eats orders in Austin and Dallas were being delivered via autonomous sidewalk robots in partnership with Avride. Avride disclosed in fall 2025 that it had secured strategic investments and commercial commitments worth $375 million from Uber and Nebius. Neither company provided details on the investment and how much was capital.
By the end of 2025, Avride robotaxis — built on Hyundai IONIQ 5s outfitted with Avride’s self-driving system — were available on the Uber app in Dallas. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration opened an investigation into Avride in May 2026 after identifying more than a dozen crashes and one minor injury.
As of this past June, these were not driverless and still had a human safety operator behind the wheel.
Baidu
Uber announced a multi-year strategic partnership with the Chinese tech giant in July 2025. Under the agreement, thousands of Baidu’s Apollo Go autonomous vehicles will be deployed on the Uber platform in multiple markets outside the U.S. and mainland China. Those deployments were set to start in Asia and the Middle East later in 2025, the companies said at the time.
In late 2025, Baidu said it would start testing Apollo Go robotaxis in London in the first half of 2026 through its partnership with Uber. As of June, those tests had not begun.
Cartken
The sidewalk delivery robot company started working with Uber in 2022, announcing a partnership to deliver food in Miami, with plans to add more cities in 2023. The two companies expanded to commercial deliveries in Fairfax, Virginia that same year and, in February 2025, announced that they were delivering food in Osaka, Japan, using Cartken robots.
Cartken shifted its focus to industrial robots by summer 2025. The company said it would maintain its food and consumer last-mile delivery business, but had no plans to expand it.
Coco
In 2024, the two companies announced a partnership to use Coco’s sidewalk robots to deliver food for Uber Eats customers, starting in Los Angeles. The partnership expanded to neighborhoods in Miami in April 2025.
Cruise
Uber and GM’s Cruise announced a strategic partnership in August 2024 to bring Cruise’s robotaxis onto the Uber app in 2025. That announcement was notable for Cruise, which had gone through a major overhaul, including layoffs and the resignation of its co-founders after one of its robotaxis struck a pedestrian in October 2023.
The Cruise reboot never got off the ground; in December 2024, citing high costs and mounting competition, GM pulled the plug on Cruise’s robotaxi business entirely and folded the unit into its broader engineering operations.
The partnership no longer exists because — welp — Cruise itself doesn’t, at least not as a robotaxi company. But at one time, the two companies had struck a deal.
Flytrex
Uber announced in September 2025 a partnership with drone delivery company Flytrex. The partnership also included a small investment in Flytrex, although the amount was not disclosed.
Hertz
Hertz isn’t developing autonomous vehicle tech, but it’s still worth including the rental car company here. In April of this year, Uber formed strategic fleet partnerships with Hertz and its affiliated operating company Oro Mobility.
This deal is part of Uber’s plans to launch a premium robotaxi service using Lucid vehicles equipped with Nuro’s self-driving system. Hertz has been tasked with day-to-day fleet management, including charging, maintenance, repairs, cleaning, and depot staffing.
Lucid
Uber has put real money behind EV maker Lucid Motors. Uber announced plans in 2025 to launch a premium robotaxi service using robotaxi-ready vehicles from Lucid. Initially, Uber said it would invest $300 million into Lucid and separately buy at least 20,000 of its Lucid Gravity SUVs over six years. The vehicles will be equipped with Nuro’s self-driving system.
In April, Uber upped its order and investment. Lucid received another $200 million from Uber, which also increased its minimum order to 35,000 vehicles. The order includes Lucid’s upcoming mid-sized platform. Uber now owns more than 11% of Lucid as part of investments it has made alongside the vehicle orders.
May Mobility
The Michigan-based autonomous vehicle startup reached an agreement with Uber in May 2025 to deploy its AVs through the app by the end of that year, starting in Arlington, Texas.
Uber and May Mobility announced plans at the time to expand to other U.S. markets in 2026 and “deploy thousands of AVs” over “the next few years,” according to the startup.
As of June, Arlington, Texas, remains the only market where customers using the Uber app can hail a May Mobility vehicle.
Mercedes
In January of this year, Mercedes-Benz announced it was collaborating with Nvidia to create a robotaxi ecosystem using self-driving S-Class sedans that would be on the Uber ride-hailing platform. No specific cities have been announced.
Momenta
The Chinese autonomous driving tech company reached an agreement with Uber in May 2025 to add its robotaxis to the app, starting in Europe in early 2026, with safety operators on board.
A few months later in September 2025, the Beijing-based company and Uber said they would start testing robotaxis in Munich, Germany in 2026.
Motional
Motional, a subsidiary of Hyundai, has been working with Uber in some form since 2021 when the companies announced plans to launch autonomous deliveries in Santa Monica. This was considered a pilot and never became a commercial program or used fully driverless vehicles.
The companies expanded the partnership in October 2022 with a 10-year operating agreement that will eventually roll out to major cities across North America; Las Vegas and Los Angeles were among the first named cities. While Motional and Uber remain partners, a commercial driverless service (meaning no human safety operator behind the wheel) has yet to materialize.
Motional went through a reboot in 2024, taking a new AI-centric approach to its self-driving system. In March 2026, Motional’s self-driving Hyundai Ioniq 5 vehicles were added to the Uber app in Las Vegas for autonomous rides to and from five areas of the city. Human safety monitors are still riding along
New Horizon
New Horizon is a fleet management company involved in Uber’s agreement with Baidu to bring the Chinese company’s Apollo Go autonomous ride-hailing service to Dubai.
Nissan
Nissan is part of Uber’s partnership agreement with Wayve. In March of this year, Uber announced plans to add self-driving Nissan Leaf EVs to its network in Tokyo, powered by Wayve’s tech. (See the Wayve entry below for more.)
Nuro
The self-driving tech startup has been tied to Uber since at least 2022, but the relationship has changed. Initially, Nuro was developing a custom-built delivery vehicle designed for the roadway. Uber and Nuro announced a 10-year partnership in 2022 to launch autonomous deliveries in Mountain View, California, and Houston starting that fall.
Nuro pivoted away from the delivery vehicle and decided to focus on licensing its self-driving tech to automakers and robotaxi operators. Uber stuck with Nuro and in 2025 announced a landmark deal to launch a premium robotaxi service using Lucid Gravity SUVs equipped with the startup’s self-driving system.
San Francisco will be the first market. In June of this year, the companies announced the second market will be Houston. Uber has also invested in Nuro. Sources familiar with the financial terms have told TechCrunch that Uber’s total commitment to Nuro, which includes its participation in the startup’s Series E round in 2025 and future milestone-based investments, is about $500 million.
Nvidia
Uber first publicly talked about Nvidia in January 2018, a different era for both companies. Uber picked Nvidia to provide AI computing for its autonomous software. With Uber’s in-house AV program sold off in 2020, that deal ended.
Fast forward to CES 2025, when Uber said it would use Nvidia’s generative world model simulation tool, Cosmos, and cloud-based AI supercomputing platform, DGX Cloud, to support the development of AV tech. Uber didn’t share many details at the time about how it planned to use these Nvidia tools.
In October 2025, Uber and Nvidia announced plans to use Nvidia’s Hyperion autonomous platform to accelerate Uber’s robotaxi program. As part of that announcement, Stellantis committed to delivering at least 5,000 Nvidia Drive-powered vehicles to Uber for robotaxi operations in the U.S. and internationally — one of the first automakers to do so.
In March of this year, the companies expanded the partnership and announced plans to launch a global fleet of entirely Nvidia software-driven autonomous vehicles, starting in Los Angeles and San Francisco in the first half of 2027 and scaling across 28 cities globally by 2028. The companies said the vehicles will run Nvidia’s Drive Hyperion platform and use Alpamayo, Nvidia’s family of open-source AI models, datasets, and simulation tools designed to handle complex driving situations.
Pony.ai
The Guangzhou, China-based company and Uber announced a partnership in May 2025 with an eye on the Middle East. The companies planned to launch a pilot that year that would make
Pony.ai’s robotaxis (with a safety operator on board) available on the Uber app.
In March 2026, Uber, Pony.ai, and Croatian company Verne announced plans to launch a commercial robotaxi service in Europe, starting in Zagreb, Croatia. Pony.ai will supply the autonomous driving system and a robotaxi called the Arcfox Alpha T5 that was developed with Chinese automaker BAIC. Verne will own and operate the fleet, and Uber will provide its vast ride-hailing network.
Rivian
This unexpected deal, which was announced in March 2026, could be worth up to $1.25 billion for Rivian. Under the agreement, Rivian will build thousands of robotaxis based on its new R2 SUV and will be equipped with the EV maker’s self-driving system, which is still under development.
Uber made an initial $300 million investment in Rivian and is “expected to purchase 10,000 fully autonomous R2 robotaxis” ahead of a planned rollout in San Francisco and Miami in 2028. The two companies said at the time they plan to launch the robotaxis in “25 cities in the U.S., Canada, and Europe by the end of 2031.” The fleet will be exclusively available on Uber’s network.
Serve Robotics
The sidewalk delivery robot startup is rooted in Uber, sort of. In 2020, Uber acquired on-demand delivery startup Postmates. The following year, the robotics division known as Postmates X spun out as an independent company called Serve Robotics.
Uber also invested in Serve, which went public in 2024 through a merger with a blank-check company.
Uber Eats has used Serve Robotics’ robots for a few years in the United States.
Starship Technologies
Sidewalk delivery robot company Starship Technologies struck a deal with Uber’s delivery unit Eats in November 2025. Under the deal, Starship robots will deliver food orders via the Uber Eats app in multiple European countries in 2026 and eventually expand to the U.S. in 2027.
Stellantis
The automaker announced in June 2026 a deal with self-driving startup Wayve, and Uber to jointly develop and deploy driverless robotaxis. Stellantis and Wayve, which Uber has invested in, were already working together. This deal brings all of the components together: automaker, self-driving tech, and ride-hailing network.
The companies have agreed to work together on vehicle integration, testing, and validation before Stellantis-made vehicles equipped with Wayve’s tech are deployed in the real world, and specifically across Europe and North America.
Tawasul
The UAE-based Tawasul is another operator andpartnered with Uber in 2024 to provide fleet management services for Uber’s WeRide robotaxi service in Abu Dhabi.
Torc Robotics
Uber Freight, the logistics company that spun out of Uber in 2018, announced a partnership in late December with Torc Robotics, a self-driving trucks company that was acquired by Daimler in 2019. The partnership has largely focused on data.
Torc has used Uber Freight to analyze volume patterns, shippers’ networks, and other data that will help it identify the most effective lanes and most suitable commercial applications for autonomous trucking deployment.
Verne
Uber’s relationship with Verne is pretty fresh. The company, formed by Rimac Group founder Mate Rimac, reached an agreement in March 2026 to launch a commercial robotaxi service in Europe, starting in Zagreb, Croatia. Pony.ai, the third partner, is supplying the self-driving system. Verne will own and operate the fleet of vehicles made by Chinese automaker BAIC.
Uber also planned to invest in Verne, although the terms have not been disclosed.
Volkswagen/MOIA
Volkswagen’s subsidiary MOIA America and Uber announced plans in 2025 to launch a commercial robotaxi service using autonomous versions of Volkswagen’s electric ID. Buzz minivan. The companies said robotaxis will launch in multiple U.S. cities over the next decade. Los Angeles is the first city.
The companies, which have set up a joint facility in Los Angeles for day-to-day fleet operations, said in April 2026 that a robotaxi service would launch later in the year, with a human safety operator on board. Driverless operations are expected to begin in 2027.
Volvo Autonomous Solutions
Uber Freight, which connects companies that need to ship goods with truck drivers and fleet carriers, first partnered with Volvo Autonomous Solutions in 2023. Two years later, the companies said the partnership was moving “out of the planning stage and delivering tangible results.”
Volvo’s VNL Autonomous truck, which was built with redundancies to support self-driving tech developed by Aurora Innovation, began delivering loads for Uber Freight customers between Dallas and Houston. Those routes have since expanded.
Waabi
The Uber and Waabi relationship is also a deep cut. The founder and CEO, Raquel Urtasun, previously worked at Uber as chief scientist at its autonomous vehicle division, Uber ATG, which Uber sold to self-driving trucking firm Aurora Innovation in 2020.
Urtasun founded Waabi in 2021 with an initial focus on self-driving trucks. Uber was among the investors that participated in its $83.5 million Series A round. Waabi and Uber got a lot closer in 2026. In January, Waabi raised $1 billion — $750 million in a Series C round and about$250 million in milestone-based capital from Uber to support the deployment of robotaxis equipped with Waabi’s self-driving system.
Waymo
The Alphabet-owned company first partnered with Uber in May 2023, when it agreed to bring some of its robotaxis on the Uber platform, starting in Phoenix. The relationship in Phoenix is limited since Waymo customers can also directly hail a robotaxi using the company’s own app.
The following year, the companies announced an expansion to Austin and Atlanta, although this time the Waymo robotaxis could only be accessed via the Uber app. The Austin service launched in March 2025, followed by Atlanta by June 2025.
The relationship has not expanded since; it has actually shrunk. The companies ended their Phoenix partnership in last month, in July. Waymo is now working to get out of its contract with Uber, which doesn’t end until May 2028.
Wayve
The buzzy UK self-driving startup has both partnered with and received capital from Uber. In February 2026, Wayve raised $1.2 billion in a round that included returning backers Microsoft, Nvidia, and Uber. The total raise could reach $1.5 billion thanks to another $300 million from Uber contingent on deploying robotaxis, beginning in London.
In March 2026, Uber announced plans to add self-driving Nissan Leaf EVs to its network in Tokyo, powered by Wayve’s tech. A pilot has been scheduled for late 2026. Under the deal, Wayve will integrate its AI-powered, self-driving software into a Nissan Leaf, which will be available on Uber’s ride-hail network in Japan.
WeRide
The Chinese robotaxi company is one of Uber’s more prolific partners. It publicly disclosed the partnership in September 2024 and shared plans to bring WeRide robotaxis to the Uber platform, starting in Abu Dhabi. The service launched in December 2024 with human safety operators and went driverless in November 2025. WeRide robotaxis launched on the Uber app in Dubai in late 2025.
Uber expanded the partnership to bring WeRide’s AVs to 15 more cities by 2030, including in Europe. In these cities, WeRide’s robotaxis will be available through the Uber app, and Uber will be responsible for fleet operations. As part of the expansion, Uber increased its investment into WeRide by $100 million. Uber has since revealed some of those cities, including Madrid and Zurich.
In February 2026, the partnership expanded again with the companies agreeing to deploy at least 1,200 robotaxis across the Middle East. The deployment, which will span Abu Dhabi, Dubai, and Riyadh, Saudi Arabia is expected to be completed as soon as 2027.
Zoox
The Amazon-owned company is an Uber latecomer. The companies announced a strategic partnership in March 2026 to deploy Zoox robotaxis on the Uber app in Las Vegas this year and in Los Angeles in 2027.
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Tech
What’s the best handheld mini fan?
It’s summer. You are sweaty. There’s some unprecedented heat wave that’s even worse than the last unprecedented heat wave. You are uncomfortable. You’re getting sweatier by the second. What do you do?
This predicament — one that’s becoming more and more common — just flat out sucks. But if you have a handheld mini fan on you, the situation can change from “actively horrific” to “less than ideal.” In sweaty circumstances, that’s a miracle.
Over the last few summers, I’ve bought a handful of random mini fans on Amazon or TikTok Shop. While those $10 to $15 devices have become staples in my summer purse, I noticed that premium brands like Shark and Dyson were rolling out their own handheld fans at much higher price points ($100 to $150). As someone who suffers from the SSRI sweats — if you know, you know — I was curious whether these higher-end products are really that much better than the drop-shipped fans I’d bought in summers past.
The verdict is: they’re all pretty good in their own way! But the best one for you depends on your budget, the size of your go-to summer bag (or pockets), and your tolerance for drawing attention to yourself with a large device blowing air in your face.
Most powerful: Dyson HushJet ($99)
I wasn’t surprised to find that the Dyson HushJet is an exceptionally powerful mini fan — this company is best known for vacuums, air purifiers, and hair dryers. Dyson knows how to make stuff that blows air! But at about 7 inches tall, the HushJet is the tallest and heaviest device I tried. It will still fit in most purses, but it’s not pocketable.
The HushJet comes with a travel bag, a charging/desktop stand, a neck lanyard, and a USB-C charger (all of these fans charge via USB-C — woohoo!).
If my desk weren’t directly below an air vent, I could see myself using this while I work, since it functions so well on a desktop. The neck lanyard looks a little dorky, and I imagined myself wearing it while pushing a stroller at Disney World. This is an odd image, since I don’t have children, but maybe the reason I envisioned a hot day out with kids is because the lanyard frees up your hands? Or, maybe it’s because if I had to give one of these devices to a kid and bet they wouldn’t break it, I’d say the Dyson is the most kid-proof? Unfortunately, the lanyard doesn’t really help the fan blow air at you while you wear it — you still have to pick it up to direct it at your face.
The HushJet is more powerful than any other mini fan I tried, but that power comes with some noise. Luckily, it has five different power settings, and the lower ones are quieter.
Most versatile: Shark ChillPill ($149)
The Shark ChillPill is the most expensive fan of the bunch, but to be fair, it also does the most. The ChillPill comes with three attachments: a fan, a water mister, and a cooling plate that you touch to your wrist or temple to help you cool down. Like the Dyson HushJet, the ChillPill can sit up on its own for desktop use. It’s about 4 inches long and about double the width of the other options because of its dual-cylinder design.
I chose to bring the ChillPill with me to a softball tournament, since I knew I’d already be sweaty enough that a mister would benefit me without making me look unnecessarily damp (there is no universe in which I would not appear damp at an all-day outdoor event in the summer).
You just have to pour a tiny bit of water into the attachment and it works great. The cooling plate is interesting, but I personally found the fan more immediately effective — plus, it has ten speeds!
I might be more inspired to bring the ChillPill with me in my bag if it came with a case for all of its accessories — I wasn’t really sure what to do with the extra little components. I mostly used the ChillPill with its fan attachment, but I was impressed by the product design when it comes to changing out attachments. There’s a locking mechanism, which you toggle when you want to remove or add a new attachment. It feels secure enough that it would be pretty difficult for an attachment to accidentally fall off or something.
I understand why the ChillPill is as wide as it is — there’s probably a lot of technical components in there that make the 3-in-1 design possible. The design works for outdoor events like music festivals, sports games, or beach days, but I prefer smaller fans for other circumstances, like when you’re the only one at the bar who thinks it’s a little hot inside, and you feel weird about that.
Good enough: JISULIFE 3-in-1 Portable Fan ($13)
The JISULIFE 3-in-1 Portable Fan was the first mini fan I ever bought, and it’s served me well for the last three years — it still works just as good as new. I’ve taken it on vacations without AC and found it endlessly valuable. It has a flashlight, though not one that’s any better than your phone flashlight, and a USB plug-in to charge your phone. Of all the fans I tested, the JISULIFE is the weakest (though still decent), and it can be kind of annoying to flip open. Then again, it has little bear ears on it. Does Dyson randomly put little bear ears on its fans? I didn’t think so.
This product isn’t going to knock your socks off. The charging is slow, yet effective. The fan is fine. The light is kind of dim. But it gets the job done well enough that it’s accompanied me on a few “glamping” trips and a trip to Paris during a heat wave. Sure, those trips all took place before I had tried any of these other fans, but I wasn’t sitting around thinking, “Gee, I sure wish I had a better fan.” (Rather, I was reflecting on how the most American thing about me is that I love AC.)
The fan is about 4.5 inches when folded, and about 8 inches when using the fan.
Best overall: This random fan from Amazon ($15)
While over $250 worth of review unit mini fans sat at home, I couldn’t stop reaching for this random MACMORE fan from Amazon when I went out. It’s definitely some sort of sketchy drop-shipping situation — the images on the listing all look very obviously edited. The company, MACMORE, only lists two products (both mini fans) on Amazon. But what can I say? I love this little thing. I even bedazzled it. (Bedazzling kit sold separately, but highly recommended to maximize whimsy.)
At 4 inches tall, this fan is both the smallest and lightest one I tried. It’s not as strong as the Shark or Dyson fans, but it works well enough that I’m not wishing the fan were stronger. It comes with a removable clip, so you can attach it to your shirt or the strap of a crossbody bag to keep cool, hands-free. Like every other fan, it makes some sound, but it’s small and quiet enough that I don’t feel like I’m drawing attention to myself when I use it in public.
When it comes down to it, the size (and low price) is probably what makes me love this fan so much. It takes up less space in my purse than my keys, and it fits in a pocket too, so it’s become a staple. But really, this all comes down to personal preference. I’m optimizing for discretion, but maybe you’ll choose to optimize for a fan with the most features or that has little bear ears on it.
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Tech
Apps that help you break free from doomscrolling and get active
Doomscrolling can be addictive. It’s common to end up on the couch for hours, mindlessly scrolling through feeds, which inevitably messes up your posture and, in the end, just ends up making you feel bad about yourself. Your eyes definitely don’t like it, either.
Fortunately, there are several apps that encourage you to get up and move before you dive into social media. There’s even one that literally has you go outside and touch grass before you can scroll TikTok or Instagram.
So, if you’re looking to cut back on screen time and be a little more active, here’s a roundup of some apps that can help.
Digital Carrot
Digital Carrot blocks distracting apps, websites and games until you meet your daily fitness, productivity or screen time goals.
It connects to wearables like the Apple Watch, and you can set personalized targets, say walking 6,000 steps a day. It also supports GPS- and time-based challenges, allowing users to block apps until they spend a certain amount of time at a specific location, such as completing a 60-minute workout at the gym.
The app’s available on iPhone, Android, as well as macOS, Windows, and Linux.
MeBeMe
MeBeMe is aimed at helping users cultivate better habits. Instead of blocking phone access, the app sends you notifications to achieve certain missions, such as doing burpees, connecting with people, or warming up for three minutes.
Though not solely focused on physical activity, its “Body” category includes challenges for athletes, dancers, cyclists, and runners.
The app is currently available for free for iOS devices.
StepBloc
StepBloc lets you lock access to apps until you walk a number of steps you can specify. In addition, you can also have link app access to completing specific workouts, such as push-ups, planks or squats for a specified amount of time.
Once the workout is completed, the user can access selected apps like Instagram, TikTok, YouTube or games. This makes StepBloc particularly useful for people who want to offset their sedentary habits with short bursts of exercise.
StepBloc is free on iOS devices, and requires a subscription for unlimited access.
Steppin
Created by the founder of Kayak, Steppin lets you trade physical movement for screen time. For example, it allows you to reward yourself with one minute of scrolling for every 100 steps you take.
You have the flexibility to set your own step goals for accessing social media, streaming services or mobile games.
It’s available to download on iOS devices.
TouchGrass
TouchGrass brings a unique twist to preventing doomscrolling habits by requiring you to step outside and take a photo of grass to unlock distracting apps.
The app uses computer vision models to scan photos, and it will only accept images of grass (not trees or other plants).
The freemium version allows you to lock two apps, and you can pay $5.99 per month or $49.99 per year to be able to lock more apps.
TouchGrass is available for iOS devices.
WalkLock
This iOS app integrates with Apple Health to limit access to designated apps until you meet your daily step goal.
The app automatically tracks steps using health data collected by the iPhone or Apple Watch. It offers a lockscreen widget, too, which displays progress throughout the day, making it easy to monitor how close you are to unlocking apps.
Walkly
Walkly is an Android app that provides a similar experience as WalkLock.
It locks selected social media, gaming, and other distracting apps until users walk a predetermined number of steps. The app continuously monitors physical activity and automatically unlocks apps when the walking goal has been achieved.
WeWard
WeWard initially launched as an app that incentivized walking by awarding users “Wards,” an in-app currency that can be exchanged for cash, gift cards or donations. It recently introduced “Walking Mode,” which allows users to restrict app access until they meet specific step counts. Both the step goals and locked apps are customizable.
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Tech
Sam Altman is still making the case for parenting via ChatGPT
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman seemed excited to share what he called a “cool use case” on Friday, posting that parents could “connect your family calendars and explain your kids’ interests” to the company’s new product ChatGPT Work, then “every morning for the drive to school, have it make a podcast that talks about one kid’s soccer game that afternoon, one kid’s upcoming birthday, some news, etc.”
Altman’s post prompted lots of virtual eye-rolling, including a simple response from Alex Hirsch, creator of the animated series “Gravity Falls”: “What if you just talked to your children”?
Hirsch’s question seems to have gone even more viral than Altman’s initial post — while Altman’s comment has been reposted around 300 times and liked around 9,600 times (as of Saturday morning), Hirsch’s response has been reposted 9,000 times and received 122,000 likes.
This isn’t the first time a tech CEO has promised that AI can shield users — and specifically users’ morning commutes — from the messiness and inefficiency of human experience. Last year, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella said he’d stopped listening his favorite podcasts during his morning drive; instead, he asked an AI chatbot about those podcasts.
Altman’s post also echoed comments he’s made about parenting in the past, most notably when he appeared on “The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon” and declared, “I cannot imagine having gone through figuring out how to raise a newborn without ChatGPT.” (Though he was also quick to acknowledge, “Clearly, people did it for a long time, no problem.”)
Getting parents on-board seems to be a priority for OpenAI, which recently posted a job listing for a product manager with experience building trust-sensitive consumer experiences for parents and families. Meta, meanwhile, is testing an AI-powered app that tells bedtime stories.
But while OpenAI has added safety features for parents, it also faces multiple lawsuits from parents and families alleging that ChatGPT played a role in loved ones’ delusions and suicides. (The company has said it’s “continuously improving how our models respond in sensitive interactions.”)
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