Data: Waymo; Map: Jacque Schrag/Axios
Waymo is accelerating its rollout of robotaxis in the U.S., adding four new cities in Texas and Florida this week as self-driving technology begins to penetrate mainstream America.
Why it matters: Armed with $16 billion in fresh capital from parent Alphabet and others, Waymo is quickly extending its lead over other players like Tesla and Amazon-owned Zoox, which are still mostly in testing mode.
The newest markets are Dallas, Houston, San Antonio and Orlando.
- The service will start slowly, with riders invited on a rolling basis until Waymo adds more cars to its fleet and scales up necessary operations like vehicle charging, service and maintenance.
- By later this year, it will be more widely available, Waymo says.
By the numbers: Now in 10 cities, Waymo has doubled the number of markets it serves in a matter of months.
- It's laying the groundwork for service in at least 20 cities, and is on track to provide more than one million driverless rides per week by the end of the year.
- It has about 3,000 robotaxis deployed nationwide, more than one-third of them in the San Francisco Bay area.
What we're watching: Waymo's robotaxis are adapting quickly to new markets, but basic operational challenges — such as charging and maintenance — could constrain network growth.
