John Krafcik is stepping down as CEO of Waymo after five years as head of the autonomous vehicle company that was set up by Google and is a subsidiary of Alphabet.

Dmitri Dolgov and Tekedra Mawakana, COO and CTO respectively, will take over at Waymo as co-CEOs.

Go deeper with GlobalData

Data Insights

The gold standard of business intelligence.

Find out more

Discover B2B Marketing That Performs

Combine business intelligence and editorial excellence to reach engaged professionals across 36 leading media platforms.

Find out more

In a statement Krafcik said he has decided to depart the Waymo CEO role and “kick-off new adventures.” However, to start he said he is looking forward to a refresh period and “reconnecting with old friends and family, and discovering new parts of the world.” He also said he will continue to serve as an advisor to Waymo.

Krafcik (59) was formerly president of True Car Inc and CEO of Hyundai North America. Before that he served for 14 years in product development roles at Ford and was a researcher on MIT's IMVP program on lean production methods in the automotive industry.

Just Auto Excellence Awards - Nominations Closed

Nominations are now closed for the Just Auto Technology Excellence Awards. A big thanks to all the organisations that entered – your response has been outstanding, showcasing exceptional innovation, leadership, and impact.

Excellence in Action
Continental has secured the Window Displays Innovation Award in the 2025 Just Auto Excellence Awards for its Window Projection solution, transforming side windows into dynamic, data-rich canvases. Discover how this compact projection technology and intelligent software are reshaping in-car UX and opening fresh revenue streams for OEMs and mobility providers.

Discover the Impact