Google's Waymo Launches Robotaxi Invasion, Declares War On Competition With 10 City Expansion…

Waymo, Google’s self-driving car darling, is expanding its robotaxi empire to more U.S. cities in 2025. After years of making Phoenix, San Francisco, and Los Angeles feel like the Jetsons, Waymo is now packing up its sensors and heading for new terrain, starting with Las Vegas and San Diego. Because if you can navigate the chaos of the Vegas strip or a freeway packed with SoCal’s finest pissed-off drivers, you’re basically ready for anything.

(Source: Giphy) 

In short, this move comes on the heels of Waymo’s announcement that it would roll into Miami next year. However, Waymo isn’t just launching this for joyrides. They are sending a limited fleet to its new markets, with human “autonomous specialists” in the driver’s seat—for now. Which makes it not autonomous? 

But alas, Waymo’s game plan is to test its cars in some of the most “dense and complex” environments each city has to offer. Translation: They’re throwing their system into the deep end and hoping it can dodge pedestrians, navigate roundabouts, and not get tripped up by something ridiculous like a rogue tumbleweed or a guy pulling a tiger on a leash through downtown Vegas (I’ve seen it both in Oklahoma AND Vegas—so its possible). 

(Source: MorningStar) 

What's more is that Google’s side-project has clocked over 4 million fully autonomous rides (read: no human backup driver) and hit a weekly run rate of 150,000 trips across its existing cities. However, while that’s no doubt impressive, the robotaxi space is still heating up with more and more competition. Amazon’s Zoox is in the mix, along with Motional (Hyundai’s self-driving lovechild) and even Tesla, which swears it’ll have its robotaxis on the road later this year. Considering Elon Musk’s track record with timelines, though, we’ll believe it when we see it. 

Now again, this all sounds great to investors—until you remember that self-driving cars are still navigating a patchwork of regulations thicker than a CVS receipt. More than 35 states allow robotaxis, but each one has its own rules. Some cities are all-in on autonomous vehicles, while others treat them like they’re the Terminator. 

(Source: Smart Cities Drive) 

Naturally, the industry is hoping Congress will finally throw them a bone with standardized federal regulations, but I wouldn’t hold my breath. The last time anyone got excited about a bill was when the Self Drive Act was introduced in 2017. Seven years and zero progress later, the industry’s still waiting for Uncle Sam to get its act together.

For now, Waymo is doubling down on its tech, banking on the idea that its early mover advantage will cement its status as the robotaxi king. Alphabet’s deep pockets don’t hurt either; this is a company that can afford to spend millions perfecting software and hardware while smaller competitors burn through cash faster than Wall Street analysts in strip clubs circa 2007. 

(Source: Giphy) 

Of course, if Waymo can continue to prove its tech works in cities as varied as Vegas and San Diego, it could not only pave the way for autonomous vehicles to finally go mainstream—but prove that Alphabet's deep pockets do make magic happen. 

In the meantime, Alphabet is up 2.76% on the day following the announcement, while Uber (the company who quite literally stole Alphabet's top autonomous vehicle engineer) is sulking -0.27% today. Meaning, place your bets accordingly, friends—and as always, stay safe and stay frosty! Until next time…

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Stocks.News holds positions in Alphabet (Google), Tesla, Uber, and Amazon as mentioned in the article.