Google/Alphabet-owned ride-hail firm Waymo has announced it is expanding to London, where it intends to offer fully autonomous ride-hailing services starting next year.
London will be Waymo’s first European city and its second international city alongside Tokyo.
Waymo said its vehicles will start driving on London’s roads within weeks with trained human specialists (often referred to as ‘Safety Drivers’) behind the wheel while it lays the groundwork for fully autonomous operations.
It also said it will scale up based on guidelines established by the UK Department for Transport and Transport for London, and work closely with local and national leaders to secure the necessary permissions to offer fully autonomous rides in 2026.
Waymo currently operates a commercial fleet of over 2,000 vehicles across the US.
