Waymo expands robotaxi service to 14 US cities as Zoox, Tesla accelerate autonomous vehicle push

Waymo said it will invite riders on a rolling basis and slowly ramp up access in the three new markets, following its usual playbook of opening rides to employees and invited guests before expanding to the public. The company said tens of thousands of people in each city have signed up, according to Engadget. A Waymo spokesperson told CNBC that in each new city the company will have dozens of robotaxis, with plans to reach "hundreds over time."

Waymo's fleet now includes more than 4,000 vehicles across 14 U.S. cities. It provides over 500,000 paid robotaxi rides per week and aims to cross 1 million weekly rides by the end of 2026, the company said. In some markets, rides are available through Uber. The new fleet includes the Ojai, a Zeekr-built minivan with Waymo's sixth-generation self-driving system, which will be the only vehicle available to riders in Denver and San Diego, according to TechCrunch.

Waymo's expansion has accelerated since March 2025, when it launched in Austin through a partnership with Uber. Since then, it has added service in Atlanta, Dallas, Houston, Miami, Nashville, Orlando and San Antonio. Last month, Nevada regulators approved a permit allowing Waymo to operate up to 1,000 vehicles in Clark County, home to Las Vegas. Waymo also plans to launch in London and Munich, though reports indicate its London rollout may face delays.

Zoox, which trails Waymo significantly, said it will begin testing its toaster-shaped vehicles in Houston and San Diego with human safety drivers on board. The company said it will have a presence in 12 U.S. markets once those two cities open. Zoox currently operates a paid service only in Las Vegas and a free service for select riders in San Francisco.

Tesla is expected to formally introduce its two-seater Cybercab at a September 3 event. The vehicle, which has no steering wheel or pedals, is designed for full autonomy and Tesla plans to build more than 125,000 annually, according to a recent filing. Tesla has been testing a robotaxi network in several Texas and Florida cities using modified Model Y SUVs, and recently began registering Cybercabs with the Texas DMV.

Waymo has taken public shots at Tesla's camera-only, end-to-end AI approach. In a blog post and an interview with Axios, Waymo executives argued that cameras alone are insufficient for safe fully autonomous driving at scale and that pure end-to-end neural networks risk "black box failures." Tesla CEO Elon Musk has long derided lidar, calling it a "crutch." The dispute sparked a social media exchange over the weekend, with some analysts criticizing Waymo's stance as "incumbent rhetoric."

The autonomous vehicle industry faces criticism from labor leaders concerned about job losses and from safety advocates pushing for standardized crash data. AVs have caused safety issues in inclement weather, blackouts and construction zones, and have sometimes required first responders to manually move vehicles. Goldman Sachs Research forecasts the U.S. robotaxi market will reach $19 billion in 2030, up from about $3 billion next year, and $48 billion in 2035.