May 7 (Reuters) - Self-driving technology company

Motional said on Tuesday it will pause robotaxi deployments with

ride-hailing firms Uber Technologies ( UBER ) and Lyft ( LYFT ),

while it lays off staff as part of its restructuring process to

focus on technology development.

The development comes ahead of electric carmaker Tesla's

unveiling of its robotaxi, dubbed "Cybercab", on Aug. 8

and as legacy automakers limit spending on expensive autonomous

driving technology in the face of regulatory and safety hurdles.

Motional said it has completed more than 100,000 autonomous

rides in Las Vegas and food deliveries in Los Angeles.

"Large-scale driverless deployment will not happen

overnight. Driverless vehicles will enter the market when the

technology has evolved and - just as importantly - when the

business case for autonomous deployment is clear," CEO Karl

Iagnemma said in a blog post.

Motional said in a statement it expects "to resume

commercial deployments once the unit economics are more

favorable".

Lyft ( LYFT ) and Uber ( UBER ) did not immediately respond to requests for

comment on the pause of their partnerships with Motional.

Auto parts supplier Aptiv ( APTV ) said last week it would

sell its stake in Motional, its joint venture with Hyundai Motor ( HYMTF )

, while the Korean automaker will fund the startup

with additional $475 million.

Last month, OpenAI and Khosla Ventures-backed Ghost Autonomy

said it was winding down operations, citing an uncertain path to

long-term profitability.

As part of Motional's restructuring process, the startup

said it would reduce workforce, focus resources on developing

and generalizing its driverless technology "while de-emphasizing

near-term commercial deployments and ancillary activities".

The company declined to provide the numbers of employees to

be laid off, but said roles across locations and functions were

impacted.