London\u2019s iconic black cabs could soon face a new rival: Waymo.<\/p>\n
The Alphabet-owned company said today it intends to launch a fully driverless robotaxi service in London, starting in 2026 \u2014 marking its first effort to expand internationally.<\/p>\n
The UK currently doesn\u2019t have any fully driverless vehicles on the road. The government has said it will start piloting fully driverless ridehail services in spring 2026, though a fuller rollout of self-driving taxis won\u2019t come until the Automated Vehicles Act of 2024<\/a> fully takes effect in late 2027.<\/p>\n Waymo says it will start deploying supervised robotaxis, with safety drivers behind the wheel, for data collection in London in the next few weeks. When it launches its commercial service next year, its fully driverless robotaxis will be available through Waymo\u2019s own ridehail app. The vehicles will be maintained by a company called Moove<\/a>, which provides fleet services, as well as a range of financial products for mobility companies. (Moove is also managing Waymo\u2019s fleets in Phoenix, Austin, and soon Miami.)<\/p>\n The government has said it will start piloting fully driverless ridehail services in spring 2026.<\/p>\n Waymo has been eyeing London for a while now. Last month, The Telegraph reported<\/a> that the company had begun advertising for staff in the UK capitol, including a \u201cfleet readiness lead\u201d and various engineers. Waymo says it has \u201cstrong ties\u201d in the UK, citing its engineering hubs in London and Oxford. These hubs include teams advancing large-scale, closed-loop simulation, \u201ca gold standard development method for fully autonomous driving technology,\u201d the company says in a blog post.<\/p>\n London won\u2019t be the first overseas city to see Waymo\u2019s distinctively driverless Jaguar SUVs. The company recently sent two dozen vehicles to Tokyo<\/a> for a small trial, and has said it aims to launch a commercial business in the country.<\/p>\n