Waymo plans to launch a robotaxi service in Miami by 2026.

• Waymo, owned by Alphabet, announced plans to expand its fleet into Miami in 2023 and offer paid rides to local users by 2026.
• Waymo's expansion into Miami suggests its increasing confidence in operating self-driving vehicles in challenging weather conditions in major U.S. metropolitan areas.
• Thanks to additional funding, Waymo has been expanding its operations rapidly over the past year.

Waymo is setting its sights on its next location: the Sunshine State.

Waymo announced that it will begin cruising through Miami with human safety drivers in 2025 before opening doors to riders for its robotaxi service through its Waymo One app in 2026.

Waymo's expansion into Miami suggests its increasing confidence in operating self-driving vehicles in challenging weather conditions in major U.S. metropolitan areas.

In 2019, Waymo tested its self-driving vehicles in Miami to enhance their performance in wet and rainy weather.

A company spokesperson stated that we enhanced our knowledge and comprehension of the Waymo Driver's performance in challenging weather conditions.

In the future, Waymo will utilize the knowledge it gained from its previous journey with all-electric Jaguar I-PACEs in the city.

The company announced that its initial territory in Florida will encompass certain sections of Miami's sprawling metropolitan area, which boasts a population of over 6 million individuals.

Thanks to additional funding, Waymo has been expanding its operations rapidly over the past year.

In November, Waymo removed its waitlist of approximately 300,000 people in Los Angeles, allowing anyone to hail a self-driving robotaxi throughout the nearly 80 square miles of Los Angeles County. The company's ride-hailing service is also available citywide in Phoenix and San Francisco.

In September, Waymo announced a partnership with Uber in Austin and Atlanta. Through this partnership, Uber riders will be able to access Waymo's robotaxis through the Uber app starting in early 2025. Additionally, Uber will be responsible for fleet management and operations of the Waymo vehicles, including maintenance and infrastructure, such as vehicle charging, cleaning, and repairs.

Waymo has partnered with Moove to manage its fleet operations, facilities, and charging infrastructure in both Miami and Phoenix. Moove will begin managing Waymo's Phoenix fleet in early 2025.

In October, Waymo secured $5.6 billion in funding to expand its robotaxi service in the U.S. The funding round was led by Alphabet, the parent company of Waymo and Google, along with earlier investors such as Andreessen Horowitz, Fidelity, Perry Creek, Silver Lake, Tiger Global, and T. Rowe Price.

Over 150,000 paid rides are being completed weekly through the Waymo One app in San Francisco, Phoenix, and Los Angeles, according to the robotaxi company.

While Waymo is currently the only autonomous vehicle developer operating a commercial robotaxi service in several major metro areas across the U.S., competitors are emerging.

Cruise, a GM-owned company, is currently working to reintroduce its autonomous vehicles on public roads after temporarily halting its services following an accident in San Francisco where one of its self-driving cars injured a pedestrian.

Tesla unveiled design concepts for a self-driving Cybercab and Robovan at an event in October. Despite classifying Autopilot and Full Self-Driving software in its vehicles as "partially automated driving systems," Tesla still requires a human to be ready to steer or brake at all times. During an October earnings call, Tesla CEO Elon Musk announced the company plans to launch a self-driving ride-hailing service in California and Texas as early as 2025.

In San Francisco, Wayve, funded by SoftBank, is testing its autonomous vehicles, while Zoox, owned by -, is testing its self-driving cars without steering wheels in several U.S. cities.

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