US Weighs Dropping Steering-Wheel Rules as China Advances National Robotaxi Standard

US regulators are considering dropping steering-wheel requirements for fully driverless vehicles, while China is moving a mandatory national safety standard for Level 3 and Level 4 automated driving through its approval process, according to a Digitimes report dated July 16, 2026¹. Suppliers say the regulatory changes on both sides could reshape the autonomous vehicle market, though the article's full details sit behind a paywall.

The US regulatory shift arrives amid intensifying domestic battles over robotaxi policy. Uber and Waymo are on opposing sides of a proposed bill in Washington, D.C. that would allow autonomous vehicles to operate in the district, according to TechCrunch reporting based on correspondence Uber sent to the D.C. Council and conversations with sources².

Uber opposes the D.C. bill, arguing it would displace for-hire human drivers and hand Waymo a de facto monopoly. The company has lobbied for a system that would require robotaxis to operate on a ride-hailing network alongside human drivers. Under that framework, AV developers like Waymo would face two options: place their robotaxis on ride-hailing apps like Uber, or employ human drivers alongside fleets of robotaxis that required years and hundreds of millions of dollars to develop.

Insiders told TechCrunch that the hybrid approach Uber is pushing has little chance of becoming law. A D.C. Council hearing on the proposal drew attention to the competing positions.

ANALYSIS The simultaneous regulatory movements in the US and China reflect distinct approaches: the US appears to be loosening vehicle-design mandates at the federal level while facing fragmented local policy fights over deployment rules, whereas China is centralizing safety requirements into a national standard. The Uber-Waymo clash over the D.C. bill illustrates how business-model competition — platform-based ride-hailing versus vertically integrated robotaxi fleets — is shaping the regulatory landscape as much as safety considerations.

China's push on autonomous driving standards follows broader efforts by Beijing to establish governance frameworks across AI-related sectors. At the 2026 World AI Conference in Shanghai, Chinese President Xi Jinping announced the launch of the World Artificial Intelligence Cooperation Organization, a body designed to set global AI standards and governance norms ctx.

ANALYSIS A binding national standard for Level 3 and Level 4 automated driving in China would give AV developers regulatory clarity that remains absent in the US, where rules vary by state and municipality. The contrast could influence where autonomous driving companies choose to scale deployments first.