DEPLOYDatabase

Company

Waymo

Waymo is Alphabet's autonomous driving subsidiary.

Founded
2009
HQ
Mountain View, CA
Status
subsidiary

The verified answer

As of Aug 2026, DEPLOY verifies Waymo: 3 models, 49 deployments across 17 regions, $27.1B raised, 1196 active incidents. 11 sources back the record.

Regulatory status3 Regulatory filing5 NHTSA recalls1 NHTSA investigation

Waymo holds 3 Regulatory filing and has 5 NHTSA recalls and 1 NHTSA investigation on record, per the DEPLOY registry.

See all 9 filings

CategoryRobotaxis

Appears inLogistics robots

Overview

Waymo is Alphabet's autonomous driving subsidiary. It operates the Waymo One robotaxi service in Phoenix, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Austin, and Miami, and runs Waymo Via for autonomous trucking. Spun out of Google's self-driving car project as a standalone Alphabet subsidiary in December 2016.

Reality check

Safety claim (Waymo)

90% fewer serious-injury crashes vs. humans (company-stated)

Verified record

Verified deployments
49 deployments on file
Active incidents
1196 incidents on file

Valuation of record

DEPLOY VERIFIED
$126Bas of Feb 2026

Priced roundSeries D post-money

See the full valuations ranking →

Key facts

Weekly rides

~500,000 paid/week (targeting 1M by end-2026)

Ride volume

15M in 2025; 20M+ lifetime

Autonomous miles

127M+ fully autonomous

Operating markets

~11 US metros (Waymo One)

Vehicle

Jaguar I-PACE, 6th-gen Waymo Driver

Recent recalls

School-bus passing; ~3,800-vehicle San Antonio flood recall

Active investigations

NHTSA (Santa Monica child injury); NTSB (TX school-bus)

Hero image candidate

upload.wikimedia.org (source: Wikimedia Commons, license: CC BY-SA 4.0, Quality image)

Miami depot 1

Operational depot in Wynwood District, Miami (verified, field-inspected 2026)

Miami depot 2

Future depot adjacent to Miami International Airport (under preparation, 2026)

Austin depot

Operations facility on Stassney near Burleson Rd, south of Ben White, Austin TX

Mesa manufacturing hub

Magna retrofits Jaguar I-PACE vehicles for Waymo fleet in Mesa, AZ

IIHS safety rating

Independent IIHS study: Waymo L4 driverless crash rate 68% lower than human drivers (July 2026)

Fleet size (July 2026)

3,800+ vehicles across 10 cities

Valuation (Feb 2026)

$126B — raised $16B to fund expansion

Uber partnership status

Exploring exit — notified Uber of independent entry Jan 2028. Parted ways in Phoenix May 2026.

Austin/Atlanta dispute

Waymo questioned cleanliness/routing of Uber-operated vehicles. Uber raised concerns about financial terms and weather-related unavailability.

Data & sources

Patent documents

9

Web sources

2

11 sources backing this record.View all →

Current platform

Ojai

Purpose-built robotaxi featuring the 6th-generation Waymo Driver with 13 cameras, 6 radars, 4 LiDARs, and sensor heaters/wipers/sprayers for all-weather operation. Rider-first design with flat floor, three LED screens, embedded braille, screen-reader compatibility, and Gemini-powered voice interface. Manufactured at Waymo factory in Mesa, Arizona. Scaling to tens of thousands of units per year.

avView model →

Retired

Waymo Via (autonomous trucking)

Waymo's autonomous-trucking program (Waymo Via), which applied the Waymo Driver to Class 8 trucks and ran supervised freight pilots with UPS, J.B. Hunt, and Wayfair (and a Daimler Truck partnership). Waymo suspended the Via trucking program in July 2023 to focus on robotaxi, and it was never revived. The Waymo Driver continues only in Waymo's robotaxi application.

truckView model →

Current platform

Waymo Driver (6th gen)

The sixth-generation Waymo Driver is Waymo's autonomous driving stack for fully autonomous robotaxi service. The platform integrates 13 cameras, 4 lidars, 6 radars, and external audio receivers, with overlapping 360° coverage and a detection range up to roughly 500 meters in nominal conditions. Compared to the fifth-generation system on the Jaguar I-PACE, the sixth-gen system uses 42% fewer total sensors. Waymo says the per-unit hardware cost is targeted under $20,000 — a more than 50% reduction from the 5th-gen system. Currently runs on the Zeekr RT (sold as the “Ojai” robotaxi, purpose-built without a steering wheel or pedals) and the Hyundai IONIQ 5; began fully autonomous commercial operations in February 2026.

avView model →

Partnerships

Every company Waymo has built with, alongside the ones only announced in a press release.

16 total9 operating6 just announced

Most-frequent partners

  1. 1Hyundai Motor Group2× joint6 total
  2. 2Allegiant Stadium1× joint
  3. 3Avis Budget Group1× joint
  4. 4Daimler Truck Holding AG1× joint3 total
  5. 5Element Fleet1× joint
  6. 6Element Fleet Management1× joint

Most recent

  1. with Las Vegas Raidersjust announced
  2. with Hyundai Motor Groupoperating
  3. with Element Fleet Managementoperating
  4. with Element Fleetjust announced
  5. with Avis Budget Groupoperating

Waymo on the deployment map

View the global map

49 verified deployments across 17 regions, newest verified Aug 2026. Explore where Waymo's robots are operating, by place and type.

Free to use on your site, with a link back to DEPLOY.

View the full Waymo deployment record →

Free to use on your site, with a link back to DEPLOY.

Relationships

Claims ledger

Public, dated claims by Waymo, each tracked against the evidence. Status is a DEPLOY assessment from primary sources: verified means an independent source confirms it; contradicted means one refutes it; open means the outcome is not yet determinable. Every entry keeps its verbatim quote and source so you can check the call yourself.

Claim Integrity: 50% (1 of 2 resolved claims verified; 8 tracked)
  • OpenCapability · claimed 2026-07-23
    Waymo is exploring options to exit its Uber partnership, with internal talks about ending deals in Austin and Atlanta. Waymo notified Uber it plans to enter these markets independently in January 2028 when their contract allows. Waymo has not ruled out a complete split.
  • OpenCapacity · claimed 2026-07-23
    Waymo operates more than 3,800 vehicles across ten cities. In February 2026, raised $16bn at a $126bn valuation to fund expansion.
  • OpenCapacity · claimed 2026-07-22
    IIHS released a 25-page autonomous vehicle study finding that Waymo L4 vehicles in driverless operation had police-reportable crash involvement rates 68% lower than human drivers in the same areas. Waymo's rate of rear-ending another vehicle was 91% lower. Waymo's rate of being rear-ended was 40% lower. 22% of L4 crash involvements were deemed police-reportable; two-thirds occurred in driverless operation. L4 vehicles were unlikely to be the striking vehicle. Data from federally required reports, state police databases, FHA VMT data, and Waymo.
  • OpenCapacity · claimed 2026-02-11 · deadline 2026-12-31
    Waymo's goal is to reach 1M trips per week by end of 2026

    Waymo did 15 million driverless rides in 2025 (~288K/week average). Reaching 1M/week would require ~3.5x growth. Ojai launch and highway expansion may help, but 1M/week by year-end is ambitious. https://www.instagram.com/reel/DOOb0kkjMX9/?hl=en

Show 4 more claims
  • Partly trueTimeline · claimed 2026-02-11 · deadline 2026-12-31
    By the end of 2026, we'll be able to have a much bigger footprint

    Waymo is expanding to Austin, Atlanta, and other cities in 2026. "Much bigger footprint" is vague but expansion is verified. https://waymo.com/about/

  • OpenTimeline · claimed 2026-02-11 · deadline 2026-12-31
    Waymo plans to launch highways for the public by end of this year

    Highway capability has been tested but public highway rides have not been confirmed as of July 2026. https://waymo.com/about/

  • VerifiedCapability · claimed 2026-01-01
    The world's first fully autonomous ride-hailing service

    Waymo operates fully driverless (Level 4) ride-hailing in Phoenix, San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Austin with paying passengers. This claim is verified and uncontested. Multiple independent journalist confirmations.

  • OpenCapacity · claimed 2026-01-01 · deadline 2026-12-31
    Plans to grow its total fleet to over 3,000 vehicles by end of 2026

    Mesa AZ factory opened (239K sqft). Fleet expansion underway with Jaguar I-Pace and new Ojai vehicle. 3,000 vehicle target is plausible given factory capacity but not yet confirmed.

Disagree with a status? Waymo can submit a correction with evidence and we log the response on the record. Methodology and the full industry ledger live at /stats/claim-integrity.

Explainers

Plain-language answers to the questions people ask about Waymo, from DEPLOY’s explainer library. Each is written in the language of the question and cross-checked against this registry.

What is Tesla's Cybercab and how is it different from Waymo's robotaxi?
Cybercab is Tesla's planned two-seat, no-steering-wheel robotaxi vehicle, revealed October 2024 with a 2026–2027 production target. Waymo runs a live commercial robotaxi service today in Phoenix, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Austin, and Atlanta. Using a lidar-plus-camera-plus-radar sensor stack with HD maps. Tesla intends Cybercab to operate on a camera-only Full Self-Driving stack with no HD maps. The two represent opposing technical bets on autonomy.Read the full explainer →
How much does a Waymo ride cost?
As of 2026, Waymo rides average roughly $18 to $20 per trip in the metros where the service runs. Typically 12 to 27 percent above Uber and Lyft on the same route, narrowed from an earlier 30-40 percent premium framing as Tesla Robotaxi competition compressed Waymo fares in select markets (some markets at ~$8/ride). Base fares vary by city, and Waymo uses algorithmic dynamic pricing that surges with demand.Read the full explainer →
Is a robotaxi cheaper than Uber? Tesla Robotaxi vs Waymo vs Uber pricing
Tesla Robotaxi's Austin pilot prices at $3 base plus $1.40 per mile, materially below Uber on equivalent trips. Waymo operates across roughly 11 US metropolitan markets and prices comparably to or modestly above Uber (averages near $20 per trip versus Uber's $17 baseline; 12 to 27 percent premium per refreshed 2026 Obi research data, narrowed from earlier 30-40 percent range as Tesla competition compressed Waymo fares). Tesla wins on price within the Austin pilot envelope; Waymo wins on city coverage and operational maturity. Outside those metros, the question doesn't apply.Read the full explainer →
Is Waymo cheaper than Uber?
Usually no. As of 2026, Waymo trips average roughly $19.69 against Uber's $17.47 on equivalent routes. About 13% higher. The gap narrows or reverses once Uber tipping is included, and Waymo can be cheaper during surge periods because its pricing reacts differently to demand than driver-supply-driven rideshare.Read the full explainer →
How many fatal crashes has Waymo had?
Through mid-2026, Waymo has not reported any rider fatalities in its commercial robotaxi service. Waymo's published safety reports (covering tens of millions of fully autonomous miles) show a crash rate substantially below the human-driver baseline for comparable urban environments. NHTSA's Standing General Order has recorded incidents involving Waymo vehicles, but the great majority involve a human-driven vehicle striking the Waymo, not the reverse.Read the full explainer →
Is Waymo actually driverless?
Yes. Waymo vehicles operate without any human driver, safety operator, or backup attendant in the vehicle during normal commercial service in Phoenix, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Austin, and Atlanta. Remote assistance operators can advise the vehicle on edge cases, but they do not directly drive the car.Read the full explainer →
Show 19 more explainers
Where does Waymo operate?
As of mid-2026, Waymo operates commercial robotaxi service across approximately 11 US metropolitan markets per registry deployment records. The earliest commercial-scale anchor cities are Phoenix (since 2020), San Francisco (2023), Los Angeles (2024), Austin (2025), and Atlanta (2025); additional metros have come online through subsequent expansion. Further announced cities include Miami and Washington, D.C.Read the full explainer →
What happens if a Waymo gets in an accident?
When a Waymo vehicle is involved in a crash, the vehicle stops automatically, Waymo's operations center is notified in real time, and a Waymo field-response team is dispatched. The incident is logged in Waymo's safety reporting and (for any qualifying crash) reported to NHTSA under the Standing General Order. Waymo's insurance handles liability claims; the rider, if present, is offered immediate assistance and an alternate trip.Read the full explainer →
Is Tesla Robotaxi available?
Yes, but narrowly. The Tesla Robotaxi pilot launched in Austin in June 2025 using Model Y vehicles, with a Tesla safety monitor in the passenger seat for early trips. As of mid-2026 the service operates across approximately four markets (Austin lead, plus Dallas, Houston, and SF Bay Area) under geofenced operational design domains with limited rider access. Invitation-based at launch, gradually opening. The future no-steering-wheel Cybercab vehicle is not part of this service.Read the full explainer →
Can a cop pull over a Waymo?
Yes. Waymo vehicles are programmed to recognize emergency vehicle lights and sirens and pull over safely. Officers can interact with the vehicle's exterior screens and contact Waymo's operations team via a phone number displayed on the vehicle. Because there is no human driver, Waymo as the operator (not an individual) is responsible for vehicle violations.Read the full explainer →
Who is at fault if a driverless car crashes?
In a commercial robotaxi crash, the AV operator (Waymo, Tesla, or another company) typically bears liability when the vehicle is in autonomous mode. The operator's commercial insurance handles claims, NHTSA investigates qualifying incidents under its Standing General Order, and specific state law determines the legal framework. For driver-assist systems like Tesla FSD (Supervised), the licensed driver remains the legally responsible party.Read the full explainer →
How does Tesla Robotaxi compare to Waymo?
As of mid-2026, the two services operate at fundamentally different scales. Waymo runs commercial robotaxi service across roughly 11 US metropolitan markets with millions of completed paid trips. Tesla Robotaxi is a pilot operating across approximately four markets (Austin lead from June 2025, plus Dallas, Houston, and SF Bay Area) using Model Y vehicles in geofenced areas. Tesla is typically cheaper per trip; Waymo has lower wait times, broader coverage, and a more developed safety record.Read the full explainer →
What's the difference between Tesla Robotaxi and Tesla Optimus?
Tesla makes two completely different robot products. Tesla Robotaxi is an autonomous-vehicle ride-hailing service running in an Austin pilot. Tesla Optimus is a bipedal humanoid robot. They share the word 'robot' and the maker, but the use cases, timelines, and current commercial-readiness states are different. If you're asking whether a Tesla robot can clean a house, you're asking about Optimus, not Robotaxi.Read the full explainer →
What is Zoox and how does it compare to other robotaxi operators?
Zoox is an Amazon-owned autonomous-vehicle company headquartered in Foster City, California. Unlike Waymo (retrofit Jaguar I-PACE) or Tesla Robotaxi (retrofit Model Y), Zoox is the only major US robotaxi operator deploying a purpose-built bidirectional vehicle with no steering wheel or driver position. Zoox launched a free public demo robotaxi service on the Las Vegas Strip and in San Francisco's SoMa neighborhood in 2025 and operates an employee shuttle program at its Foster City headquarters. Paid commercial service was planned for 2026 pending federal approval; current public rides remain free as of mid-2026.Read the full explainer →
What is Aurora and how does its autonomous trucking work?
Aurora Innovation is a US autonomous-vehicle company exclusively focused on commercial Class 8 trucking. Aurora launched commercial driverless trucking service between Dallas and Houston in April 2024 with freight customers including Werner Enterprises, Hirschbach Motor Lines, and Schneider. The company was founded by Chris Urmson (Google self-driving alumni) with Sterling Anderson and Drew Bagnell; it is a publicly-traded NASDAQ company following a 2021 SPAC merger.Read the full explainer →
What are the main Chinese robotaxi companies (Baidu Apollo Go, Pony AI, WeRide) and how do they compare to US operators?
Three Chinese autonomous-vehicle operators run commercial robotaxi services at substantially larger scale than US peers: Baidu Apollo Go (commercial robotaxi in Beijing, Wuhan, Chongqing, Shenzhen, and additional cities); Pony AI (commercial services in Guangzhou, Beijing, and Shenzhen; NYSE-listed November 2024); and WeRide (commercial fleet in China plus international deployments in Abu Dhabi and Singapore). The Chinese commercial AV cluster operates at higher trip volumes, lower per-ride pricing, and broader city coverage than US peers including Waymo.Read the full explainer →
Why are frontier AI labs (OpenAI, Google DeepMind, Meta) entering robotics in 2025-2026?
The major frontier AI research labs are committing institutionally to robotics in 2025-2026 as a distinct industry cluster. OpenAI formally relaunched its robotics division in May 2026 after a 4-to-5-year hiatus. Google DeepMind operates the Gemini Robotics program as part of its broader model-to-embodiment research. Meta has expanded AI robotics work alongside its Reality Labs portfolio. The cluster is not about any one lab making a robot; it is about foundation-model research lines extending toward physical-world embodiment.Read the full explainer →
Which is safer, Waymo or Tesla Robotaxi?
Waymo has the substantively stronger verified safety record in 2026: multi-year operational data across roughly 11 US metropolitan markets, published annual safety reports with per-million-miles accident-rate metrics, third-party actuarial validation (Swiss Re), and accident rates substantively below human-driver baselines for comparable urban environments. Tesla Robotaxi has a much shorter operational history (pilot launched June 2025 across 4 markets: Austin lead, Dallas, Houston, SF Bay Area), thinner published safety analysis, and operates an unrelated safety-data context from Tesla Autopilot. The comparison is asymmetric because the operational scales are asymmetric, not because Tesla Robotaxi has demonstrated safety problems at pilot scale.Read the full explainer →
Are robotaxis safe?
Yes, on average, at the per-operator scales that have accumulated data. Waymo's published safety record shows a crash rate substantially below the human-driver baseline for comparable urban environments across tens of millions of autonomous miles. Tesla Robotaxi and Zoox operate at pilot scale with thinner public safety datasets but no fatal crashes verified. The fair conclusion per DEPLOY's framework: robotaxi safety is verifiable per-operator at the scales each has accumulated, with statistical confidence intervals tied to cumulative mileage.Read the full explainer →
How safe is Tesla Robotaxi?
Tesla Robotaxi's Austin pilot launched in June 2025 and has accumulated roughly 12 months of operational history as of mid-2026, with subsequent expansion to Dallas, Houston, and SF Bay Area for a 4-market pilot footprint. The published per-mile safety statistics are thinner than Waymo's multi-year operational baseline; no fatal Tesla Robotaxi crashes have been verified at the pilot scope. The honest framing is asymmetric data: Tesla Robotaxi's safety record is verifiable at the pilot scale that exists, but the depth is not yet at the level of Waymo's published annual safety reports with third-party actuarial validation. Pilot-stage data is not the same as commercial-scale data.Read the full explainer →
What is Tesla's fatality rate, and which Tesla product are you asking about?
Asking about 'Tesla's fatality rate' requires first naming which Tesla product. Tesla Autopilot (consumer ADAS bundled with vehicles since 2015) has substantial NHTSA-tracked incident history including hundreds of reported fatalities under the Standing General Order framework. Tesla Full Self-Driving (FSD; supervised) is a distinct product with less aggregated public data. Tesla Robotaxi (4-market pilot: Austin lead from June 2025, plus Dallas, Houston, SF Bay Area) is supervised remote-operations with no fatal crashes at pilot scope. Tesla Optimus is a humanoid robot; vehicle fatality framework does not apply. The product disambiguation is the central editorial question.Read the full explainer →
What does Waymo's 2025-2026 safety report show, and is Waymo safer than human drivers?
Waymo publishes annual safety reports with per-million-miles accident-rate metrics, third-party Swiss Re actuarial validation, and direct comparison to human-driver baselines for comparable urban environments. The 2025-2026 reporting cohort shows substantively lower police-reported crash rates and injury-causing crash rates per million miles than human drivers in comparable contexts. The honest framing is favorable to Waymo but methodologically complex: urban versus suburban operating contexts, sample sizes, and reporting-standard differences between Waymo and human-driver-baseline studies all shape the comparison.Read the full explainer →
Can you buy a Tesla Robotaxi?
No. Tesla Robotaxi is a ride-hailing service, not a vehicle you can purchase. The service operates in an Austin pilot with consumer pricing at $3 base plus $1.40 per mile, booked through the Tesla app. The vehicle Tesla has shown for consumer purchase in the autonomous-vehicle category is the Cybercab, which has not entered production. Tesla Model Y, Model S, Model 3, and Cybertruck are Tesla's current consumer vehicles, with Autopilot driver-assist available; none of them are Robotaxi-class autonomous vehicles you can buy.Read the full explainer →
What is physical AI?
Physical AI refers to AI systems that operate in the physical world rather than purely in digital environments. The category spans autonomous vehicles, humanoid robots, autonomous mobile robots in warehouses, drones, and AI-augmented industrial automation. Physical AI differs from digital-only AI in that the system must perceive, decide, and act under physical-world constraints (sensor noise, latency, mechanical failure modes, regulatory frameworks). DEPLOY tracks physical AI across four subcategories with distinct verification frameworks per category.Read the full explainer →
When can you buy a Tesla Cybercab?
Cannot buy as of mid-2026. Tesla Cybercab was unveiled at the October 10, 2024 We, Robot event with Musk-stated target price below $30,000 and a production target that has slipped repeatedly per subsequent earnings calls. As of mid-2026: not in production; no consumer order channel; no public reservation queue; no published delivery timeline beyond Musk-stated forward targets. Per DEPLOY's framework, Cybercab is the most-promised, least-verified Tesla physical AI product. Optimus has ~300-500 internal units, Robotaxi has 4 verified markets, Semi has verified shipper fleets; Cybercab has reveal-event demonstrations and Tesla statements only.Read the full explainer →

Current leadership (6)

Founders (1)

See all founders across the registry →

Former / Previously (12)

Media (1)

Company-anchored media. Official assets the company has published at the company level, distinct from model-anchored media that lives on individual product pages.

Safety record

36 recalls and 1160 incidents on record (3 catastrophic, 29 serious, 57 moderate, 1104 minor). Most recent: Jul 2026.

catastrophic
3
serious
29
moderate
57
minor
1104
Severity not classified
3
collision
1130
recall
36
regulatory action
14
malfunction
5
traffic disruption
5
other
2
fatality
2
property damage
1
injury
1

Most recent: Jul 2026

Only active incidents are counted. Retracted incidents are excluded from this summary but remain reachable at their canonical URLs.

Full safety record: incidents, sourcing, and exposure data →

Incidents affecting Waymo (1196)

Showing the first 100 of 1196. View all 1196 incidents

Includes incidents linked directly to this company, to its models, or to deployments of its models or under its operation. Retracted incidents are excluded from this view but remain reachable at their canonical URLs.

Corridors where Waymo operates (6)

Robot-delivery corridors on DEPLOY Ground where Waymo runs a documented fleet.

Operator customers (2)

Brains developed (1)

Recent coverage

Waymo in third-party press

Peers

94 peers across 2 segments. Every Waymo competitor derived from shared form-factor and application-domain edges.

av(88)

57 companies in this segment · highly_concentrated (HHI 4969.122215850638) · leader Waymo at 6990%

autonomous vehicle(6)

  • May Mobilityadjacent competitor(reported)
    weak
  • Cruisedirect competitor(reported)
    strong
  • Motionaldirect competitor(reported)
    strong
  • Zooxdirect competitor(reported)
    strong
  • Baiduadjacent competitor(reported)
    moderate
  • Pony AIadjacent competitor(reported)
    moderate