From Postmates Spinoff to Robotics Pioneer: How Serve Robotics Attracted Silicon Valley's Heavyweights

The rise of Serve Robotics (NASDAQ: SERV) represents one of the tech industry’s most intriguing turnarounds — a company that emerged from a forgotten corner of Uber’s (NYSE: UBER) portfolio to become a magnet for elite investors. Today, the autonomous delivery robot maker has emerged as one of the top robotics companies reshaping urban logistics, backed by both Nvidia (NASDAQ: NVDA) and ride-hailing giant Uber at various stages of its journey.

An Unexpected Inheritance

The story of how Serve Robotics came into existence reveals the unpredictability of tech acquisitions. When Uber acquired Postmates in 2020 for $2.65 billion as an all-stock deal, the primary goal was straightforward: strengthen Uber Eats’ competitive position during the pandemic-driven surge in food delivery demand. However, buried within Postmates’ assets was an experimental robotics division pursuing an ambitious vision — autonomous last-mile delivery.

Uber initially viewed this robotic venture as peripheral to its core business. The company made the strategic decision to spin off this division in 2021, creating space for the new entity to pursue its specialized mission independently. Today, Uber retains a 12% equity position in the spun-off company and has become instrumental in scaling its operations through massive deployment orders.

How Tech Giants Got Involved

Nvidia’s Strategic Play: The AI chipmaker entered the picture through a natural collaboration. As Serve Robotics sought to integrate cutting-edge artificial intelligence capabilities into its autonomous delivery machines, Nvidia saw an opportunity to demonstrate real-world applications of its technology. In 2022, Nvidia deployed $12 million into the venture for what would become an 8% stake. However, demonstrating its tactical investment discipline, Nvidia liquidated its entire position in Q4 of last year at a substantial profit — a move that validated the company’s core thesis even as it moved capital elsewhere.

Uber’s Doubled Down Bet: Rather than exiting like Nvidia, Uber intensified its commitment. Beyond maintaining its ownership stake, Uber Eats has become Serve Robotics’ anchor customer. The ride-hailing platform deployed 1,000 delivery robots on its logistics network in 2025 alone — including 380 units just last month — with projections to reach 2,000 units by year-end.

The Case for Growth Despite Current Metrics

At first glance, Serve Robotics’ financials appear underwhelming: $1.8 million in annual revenue and merely 57 active robots in operation at the start of 2025. These figures beg an obvious question about why seasoned investors and corporations would back what appears to be an unprofitable venture.

The answer lies in trajectory and market potential. Within weeks of the Uber partnership expansion, DoorDash (NASDAQ: DASH) — Uber’s fierce rival in food delivery — announced a multiyear partnership with Serve Robotics, signaling industry-wide recognition of the technology’s viability. Such endorsements from competing platforms suggest the robotics solution has cleared credibility thresholds that matter in enterprise procurement.

The stock market has responded accordingly. Despite absorbing a 16% decline during recent market turbulence, Serve Robotics has appreciated nearly 60% over the past twelve months, suggesting investors anticipate explosive top-line expansion in the years ahead.

Why This Moment Matters for Robotics

The convergence of Serve Robotics’ commercial scaling with partnership commitments from multiple major platforms marks an inflection point in autonomous delivery adoption. As one of the emerging top robotics companies gaining real-world deployment at scale, Serve Robotics is effectively running a live test of whether autonomous logistics can work profitably in dense urban environments — the most challenging operational context.

The fundamental question the company addresses — why move lightweight parcels in heavy vehicles when specialized robots can handle the task — has resonated with multiple stakeholders simultaneously. That alignment between investor interest, corporate partnerships, and market adoption patterns suggests the story of Serve Robotics is just beginning.