While self-driving cars aren't frequently seen on America's streets, companies developing autonomous vehicles have made tremendous progress in developing these innovative vehicles in the past few years, leading investors to consider options like Nuro stock.
While the company was originally founded with the aspiration of developing a self-driving car, the company shifted gears in 2024 and is working to license its autonomous vehicle technology to original equipment manufacturers, among others. Investors have the ability to gain artificial intelligence (AI) exposure through a Nuro investment. Even those who superficially follow the markets know that one of the most dominant trends is the enthusiasm for AI stocks. And there's no shortage of opportunities from which AI-focused investors can choose. From semiconductor companies like Nvidia (NVDA -3.38%) to those that embed AI in their cybersecurity solutions like CrowdStrike (CRWD -4.18%), there are plenty of options. Among these is Nuro, which relies on AI to facilitate its autonomous driving capabilities.
Unlike many self-driving car stocks that are working to transport people, Nuro was singularly focused on food delivery in the early days after its founding in 2016. Now, however, it's taking a much broader approach, developing in-vehicle software and hardware -- dubbed Nuro Driver -- to facilitate self-driving capabilities from Level 2 to Level 4.
The company is currently led by its two co-founders, who were both Google engineers: Jiajun Zhu, Nuro's CEO, and Dave Ferguson, Nuro's president. The company achieved an industry milestone in 2020 when the U.S. Department of Transportation and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration granted Nuro approval for a self-driving vehicle exemption for the company's R2 vehicle -- the first of its kind.
People interested in driving ahead with an investment in Nuro stock have several things to consider, such as how to buy shares, when it will hold its potential initial public offering (IPO), and alternative investment opportunities.
IPO
Is Nuro publicly traded?
Is Nuro publicly traded?
Nuro may be driving onto investors' radars, but as of February 2025, Nuro was still a privately held company. While retail investors can't hitch a ride with Nuro, the company has secured investments from SoftBank (SFTB.Y -1.86%), Disney (DIS 0.64%), and Alphabet (GOOG 0.55%)(GOOGL 0.63%), as well as several venture capital firms.
When will Nuro IPO?
When will Nuro IPO?
For people who are patient and comfortable with speculative investments that entail higher degrees of risk -- but offer the chance for higher rewards -- buying IPO stocks presents unique investment opportunities. And while several companies are planning to go public in 2025, it's highly unlikely that Nuro will find itself on the IPO calendar anytime soon.
How to invest
How to buy Nuro stock
Nuro stock is not yet available to the public. Accredited investors, however, may be able to buy shares before the company launches an IPO. People who fit the criteria of an accredited investor may be able to buy Nuro stock on platforms such as Forge Global (FRGE -1.72%), which allows them to invest in privately held companies.
If you don't qualify as an accredited investor, you're not completely out of luck. There are publicly traded companies with businesses similar to Nuro.
- Open your brokerage app: Log into your brokerage account where you handle your investments.
- Search for the stock: Enter the ticker or company name into the search bar to bring up the stock's trading page.
- Decide how many shares to buy: Consider your investment goals and how much of your portfolio you want to allocate to this stock.
- Select order type: Choose between a market order to buy at the current price or a limit order to specify the maximum price you're willing to pay.
- Submit your order: Confirm the details and submit your buy order.
- Review your purchase: Check your portfolio to ensure your order was filled as expected and adjust your investment strategy accordingly.
Although Nuro stock may not be an option for ordinary retail investors, there are comparable companies that they may find appealing.
1. Nvidia
Although picking up shares of Nuro isn't a possibility for most investors, there's still the opportunity to gain indirect exposure to the self-driving car stock with Nvidia. The semiconductor powerhouse has developed a platform specifically designed for automotive applications: Nvidia Drive AGX. A key hardware component of Drive AGX is DRIVE Thor, a chip that incorporates sophisticated central processing units (CPUs) and graphic processing units (GPUs) to provide autonomous driving. In September 2024, Nuro announced its autonomy platform Nuro Driver, built with "Nvidia Drive Thor with Arm Neoverse™ technology – that combines automotive-grade hardware with AI-powered self-driving software."
In addition to Nuro, Nvidia provides its automotive hardware to a variety of other customers, including BYD (BYDDY -6.12%) and XPeng (XPEV -4.13%). During its fourth quarter 2025 earnings presentation, Nvidia noted that self-driving platform products were the primary factor behind the company achieving a 55% year-over-year revenue increase in its automotive business for fiscal 2025.
2. Tesla
There are plenty of car companies striving to develop sophisticated autonomous driving functionality, but Tesla (TSLA -3.45%) is likely the name that most people on the street will associate with self-driving cars, and for good reason. Tesla has made tremendous strides in achieving self-driving functionality. For vehicles built after September 2014, drivers can use Tesla's advanced driver assistance system, Autopilot. In addition to matching the speed of the vehicle to the speed of surrounding traffic, Autopilot provides steering assistance within clearly marked lanes with traffic-aware cruise control.
Drivers who want an even more advanced autonomous driving experience can subscribe to Tesla's Full Self-Driving (FSD) capability. In addition to the Autopilot features, FSD capability includes automatic parallel parking, changing lanes, plus stopping at signs and traffic lights -- to name a few features.
Besides vehicles where people sit in the drivers' seats, Tesla plans to produce driverless vehicles, called Robotaxis, which rely on FSD technology. Tesla plans to begin volume production of its Robotaxi in 2026.
3. Uber
For investors who remember Nuro's original ambitions of facilitating autonomous food delivery, Uber is a worthy consideration. While Uber originally made its name from ridesharing, its delivery business -- which includes food, alcohol, and other items -- has grown considerably recently in terms of profitability. Uber's delivery segment adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) in 2024 rose $965 million to $2.5 billion.
Amplifying the appeal of Uber stock for Nuro-focused investors, a portion of Uber's delivery revenue directly stems from Nuro itself. In September 2022, Uber and Nuro agreed to a 10-year partnership, with Uber planning to use Nuro's self-driving vehicles to make food deliveries in Houston and Mountain View, Calif. Uber also has partnerships with other self-driving companies like WeRide (WRD -2.19%) and Pony (PONY -2.11%).
Artificial Intelligence
Profitability
Is Nuro profitable?
Because Nuro is a privately held company, it isn't subject to the same financial reporting requirements as publicly held companies, so investors don't have the luxury of combing through Nuro's quarterly filings and 10-Ks. As a result, insight into the company's financial circumstances is rather scant, including whether the company is generating a profit.
Should I invest?
Should I invest in Nuro?
With its dedication to licensing its autonomous driving technology, investors may find Nuro stock enticing. They're out of luck since the company hasn't held an IPO. If the company proceeds with an IPO, however, it will have to submit regulatory filings, providing investors with much greater insight into the company's financials and helping them to make a more informed decision about whether the stock is a smart investment for them.
Accredited investors may presently be able to gain a position in Nuro but should only proceed if they're comfortable with a more speculative investment.
ETF options
ETFs with exposure to Nuro
Since Nuro is a privately held company, investors can't gain exposure to the stock through an exchange-traded fund (ETF). There's no need to despair, though, since there are several ETFs that provide exposure to stocks closely related to Nuro.
- ARK Autonomous Technology & Robotics ETF (ARKQ -1.91%): For investors who want more comprehensive exposure to autonomous mobility, the ARK Autonomous Technology & Robotics ETF is a great choice. Of course, there's exposure to Tesla (the largest position in the ETF with an 11.3% weighting), but there's also extensive exposure to drone stock AeroVironment (AVAV -3.02%) and AI semiconductor stalwart Nvidia. With about $1 billion in net assets, the ETF has an expense ratio of 0.75%.
- iShares Self-Driving EV and Tech ETF (IDRV -0.45%): Investors looking for more concentrated exposure to both self-driving cars and electric vehicles (EVs) might want to kick the tires on the iShares Self-Driving EV and Tech ETF. XPeng (XPEV -4.13%), BYD, and Li Auto (LI 0.34%) are the top three holdings, but the ETF also includes companies manufacturing EV batteries and mining companies producing minerals used in EV batteries. The iShares Self-Driving EV and Tech ETF has $151 million in net assets, and it has a 0.47% expense ratio.
- VanEck Semiconductor ETF (SMH -2.87%): Packed with leading semiconductor manufacturers, the VanEck Semiconductor ETF will attract interest from investors looking for exposure to businesses that provide the "brains" for self-driving vehicles. Broadcom (AVGO -3.7%) is the largest holding in the ETF with an 11.4% weighting, while ASML (ASML -2.78%) and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (NASDAQ:TSM) and represent the next largest positions with weightings of 10.4% and 9.7%, respectively. The VanEck Semiconductor ETF has a 0.35% expense ratio and more than $2.2 billion in net assets.
Related investing topics
The bottom line on Nuro
Nuro may not be delivering food to your front door in the near future, but its partnership with Uber is providing service to limited customers in California and Texas, suggesting the company is farther down the road to growing its operations than some of its peers.
But without an IPO on the horizon, this privately held company isn't an investment opportunity that's widely available. Still, investors can gain indirect exposure to Nuro through investments in Nvidia and Uber, as well as various ETFs that focus on autonomous mobility companies and semiconductor companies.
FAQ
Investing in Nuro FAQ
Can you buy stock in Nuro?
Because Nuro hasn't held an IPO, its stock isn't available to the majority of investors. However, accredited investors may be able to buy shares on platforms like Forge Global.
Is Nuro a good stock to buy?
Investing in Nuro isn't an option unless you're an accredited investor, as it's still a privately held company. For accredited investors who can gain a position in Nuro, it's imperative they understand the substantial risk of investing in a company whose financial information is scant.
Who are the investors in Nuro?
In addition to the company's insiders, Nuro has various investors, from venture capital firms to corporations like Disney, Alphabet, and SoftBank.
What is the valuation of Nuro?
According to Forge Global, the last known valuation for Nuro was $414.5 million.
