Waymo’s autonomous taxis will also begin operating in London starting in 2026, a decision that illustrates the assertion of its capabilities outside the U.S., as the British capital is one of the most cosmopolitan and bustling cities in Europe. The decision by the American technology company to enter the British driverless transport market – if the timeline holds, Waymo’s autonomous taxis will start moving in the city during 2026 – is presented as a measure of “support for the extensive network of buses, underground, bicycles, and pedestrian infrastructures” in the city, and aims to accelerate the development process of autonomous mobility.
The service will be available through an app, in partnership with fleet operations specialist Moove. The company also intends to collaborate with local and national leaders to quickly secure all necessary approvals for the introduction of the new private commercial transport system in the English metropolis.
Waymo is already operating in the UK, as it has international engineering centers in London and Oxford, where it has teams dedicated to developing large-scale simulations and closed circuits. The vehicles to be used in this new autonomous taxi service will be the Jaguar I-Pace, SUVs equipped exclusively with electric drivetrains.
“We are proud of our partnership with Jaguar Land Rover, an iconic British company. The I-Pace equipped with the Waymo Driver conducts hundreds of thousands of autonomous trips every week in the U.S., and they are also already operating in Tokyo, Japan. Our ambition is to expand our international presence”, says the American technology company. In the U.S. alone, the Waymo Driver has already traveled over 100 million miles autonomously and has completed more than 10 million paid trips, numbers that demonstrate the potential of driverless driving systems. “We are excited about the possibility of demonstrating to Londoners the reliability, safety, and magic of what we do. We are making roads safer and transportation more accessible in the locations where we operate”, concluded Tekedra Mawakana, the company’s director.
