Waymo's robotaxis to start carrying passengers in Atlanta, expanding Uber partnership
Share and Follow


Waymo’s robotaxis will begin carrying passengers through parts of Atlanta on Tuesday in an expansion of a partnership with Uber that began earlier this year in Austin.

Waymo’s driverless march into Atlanta comes just days after Tesla finally launched a limited robotaxi service in Austin, more than five years after CEO Elon Musk brashly promised the electric automaker would quickly overtake Waymo as the leader in autonomous driving technology. Unlike Waymo’s robotaxis, Tesla is initially placing a human in the passenger seat of its rival service to take over the vehicle if something goes wrong.

While Tesla is starting with about a dozen supervised robotaxis, Waymo and Uber have dispatched about 100 completely driverless vehicles in Austin less than four months after their partnership began. The expansion into Atlanta keeps the two companies aligned with a road map they laid out last September.

As has been the case in Austin, Waymo’s robotaxis in Atlanta will be dispatched through Uber’s app. Uber will give customers a choice to request a car operated by a human if they don’t want to take a driverless ride. The robotaxis will initially cover a 65-square-mile (168,00-square-kilometers) area within the Atlanta market before expanding to a larger stretch.

Waymo’s own ride-hailing app is available in Phoenix, Los Angeles and a steadily expanding swath of the San Francisco Bay Area. Factoring in its partnership with Uber, Waymo is currently providing more than 250,000 paid rides per week — making it the early frontrunner in the still-nascent robotaxi market.

But competition looms down the road as Musk continues to insist Tesla’s robotaxi service will be able to grow quickly and Amazon gears up to bring its Zoox driverless cabs to Las Vegas later this year — with plans to expand into San Francisco next year. Zoox is also aiming to bring its robotaxi service to Atlanta, although it hasn’t set a target date for that yet.

Uber once had ambitions to build robotaxis, but reversed course after a bruising legal battle with Waymo, which alleged the ride-hailing company stole its autonomous technology after poaching one of its engineers. After reaching a $245 million settlement with Waymo, Uber eventually sold its self-driving vehicle division following a 2018 crash that killed a pedestrian in Tempe, Arizona.

Uber then pivoted to robotaxi partnerships to remain competitive as driverless cabs reshape the ride-hailing market. “By integrating Waymo’s cutting-edge technology into the Uber platform, we’re continuing to make transportation more convenient, sustainable, and reliable,” said Sarfraz Maredia, who oversees Uber’s efforts in autonomous driving.

With 18 different robotaxi partnerships in place around the world, Uber says it is on pace to make about 1.5 million annual driverless trips that either transport passengers or deliver food.

Share and Follow
You May Also Like
Portland activists told to point lasers at federal helicopter

Portland activists told to point lasers at federal helicopter

() A federal helicopter that has monitored nightly protests outside an Immigration…
Churches look to step up as government services dwindle under Trump

Churches look to step up as government services dwindle under Trump

Where the federal government is pulling back, churches are looking to step…
Meghan and Harry seen separately in NYC after awkward red carpet

Meghan and Harry Make Separate Appearances in NYC Following Red Carpet Misstep

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle stepped out – separately – in New…
At least 15 arrested during protests at Broadview ICE facility

At least 15 arrested during protests at Broadview ICE facility

BROADVIEW, Ill. () At least 15 people were arrested on Saturday outside…
Trump to fly to Israel, meet hostages freed in Hamas deal

Trump to fly to Israel, meet hostages freed in Hamas deal

Trump is expected to arrive in Israel and personally welcome freed hostages…
‘No Kings’ protest could attract paid agitators and foreign influence, crowd-for-hire CEO warns

‘No Kings’ protest could attract paid agitators and foreign influence, crowd-for-hire CEO warns

NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles! The head of a…
Gigi Hadid recalls body-shaming after Victoria's Secret runway debut

Gigi Hadid Opens Up About Facing Body Criticism After Her Victoria’s Secret Runway Debut

Gigi Hadid became emotional as she recalled body-shaming comments after she made…
Pam Bondi urged to take over murder of aspiring teacher

Calls for Pam Bondi to Lead Investigation into Aspiring Teacher’s Tragic Death

Congresswoman Nancy Mace from South Carolina has urged the Justice Department to…