Waymo to launch Autonomous Ride-hailing in London by 2026 as race with Uber and Lyft intensifies
Waymo, the self-driving car company backed by Google’s parent company, has confirmed plans to roll out its self-driving service in London by 2026, marking a major step forward in the discovery of autonomous shipping.
Already operating seamless wireless services in US cities including Phoenix, Los Angeles and San Francisco, Waymo will work with fleet partner Moove to launch the service in the UK capital, using its WayRient driverless cars.
Mov puts Waymo in direct competition with larger ride-hailing rivals – to avoid rivals Uber and Lyft, both of which are preparing to launch their own autonomous services in the UK next year. Uber has partnered with London-based Ai Firm Wayve, while Lyft has teamed up with Chinese Internet Giant Baidu to expand into both the UK and Germany.
“We are delighted to bring the reliability, safety and magic of waymo to London,” said Tekedra Mawakana, who has “Shown us how we can make a fully autonomous ride – praise, and we can’t wait to expand the benefits of our technology to the Commonwealth of Nations.”
The company is already working with UK regulators to secure the approval required under the government’s proposed autonomous driving (AVS) scheme. Waymo operates Engineering teams in London and Oxford and has long-standing R&D links in the UK.
UK Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander welcomed the announcement, calling it a new win for travel and economic growth.
“I am delighted that Waymo intends to bring its services to London next year,” he said. “Growing the AV sector will increase accessible transport options while bringing jobs, investment and opportunities to the UK.”
Autonomous vehicles have faced scrutiny in the wake of the first phase of deployment, but UK lawmakers have cautiously welcomed Waymo’s expansion, citing safety concerns.
“Autonomous vehicles, such as Waymo, hold the opportunity to significantly improve road safety because the human driver is being removed,” said James Gibson, chief executive of Road Safety GB. “Waymo vehicles have demonstrated significantly safer performance compared to human drivers for more than 100 million miles.”
Waymo’s UK launch sets the stage for a competitive London market where multinational ride-hailing providers will race to scale autonomous delivery.
Analysts say the success of the pilots will depend on public acceptance, pricing, regulatory clearance and the ability of AVS to operate safely in London’s safe urban environment.
In 2026 he shaped the defining year of autonomous travel in the UK, London could be one of the major European cities to see a large deployment of large driving services – operators and the public are always accompanied by economic impacts.
