Ready to order up a ride in a driverless Jaguar? Buckle up, Miami: Waymo has set its sights on the Magic City as its next expansion market.
Alphabet’s Waymo said on Thursday the Waymo will expand its autonomous ride-hailing services to Miami, adding another city to its operations that already include 150,000 weekly rides in LA, San Francisco, Austin and Phoenix. Waymo said it will first begin cruising Miami’s streets with human safety drivers next year and hopes to launch its full robotaxi service to riders through its Waymo One app in 2026.
Waymo first began testing its service in the Miami area in 2019, which the company said helped improve the ability of its self-driving vehicles to navigate in wet conditions. Waymo said its previous road trips to the Sunshine State’s “challenging” rainy conditions (including navigating street flooding) have been “invaluable” in advancing its autonomous driving capabilities.
Next year, Waymo said, it will reacquaint its fleet of all-electric Jaguar I-PACEs to Miami’s traffic clogged roads before going fully driverless with its ride-hailing service in 2026. Art Basel traffic might be a good test. Waymo vehicles follow the speed limits and other rules of the road.
“Fully autonomous driving technology offers a safe and convenient option to the people of Miami. I’m so pleased to welcome Waymo to our city. Waymo’s commitment to sustainability with their all-electric fleet is the perfect mobility option to our city as we continue to prioritize low cost, clean energy,” said Miami Mayor Francis X. Suarez in a statement.
Waymo also announced a partnership with vehicle financing firm Moove under which the startup will manage Waymo’s fleet operations, facilities and charging infrastructure in Phoenix and Miami, and also help the company build out the necessary charging infrastructure and depots for its fleet of Jaguar I-Paces in Miami. It’s all part of Waymo’s efforts to establish and maintain market dominance in the rapidly evolving self-driving technology sector.
“Together, we will provide safe, seamless trips for riders, and scale faster and more cost-effectively over time, with safety continuing to lead the way,” said Ryan McNamara, Vice President of Operations at Waymo.
Last month, Waymo, formerly Google’s self-driving car project, opened its ride-hailing services to everyone in Los Angeles. In October, the company closed a $5.6 billion funding round led by Alphabet that also included Andreessen Horowitz, Fidelity, Tiger Global and others.
Argo AI has also been testing driverless service in the Miami area over the past couple of years. Other competitors nationally include Cruise, Tesla, Zoox and Wayve.
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