Waymo opens in three new cities as the robotaxi race picks up speed

Key points

• Waymo launched commercial driverless ride service in San Diego, Tampa and Denver as of May 2026, marking its first paid operations in Colorado.
• Zoox plans to begin supervised testing (with a human driver on board as a safety backup) in Houston and San Diego, bringing its total market presence to 12 U.S. cities.
• Waymo operates more than 500,000 rides per week across 14 U.S. cities and aims to hit 1 million rides per week by the end of 2026.
• Goldman Sachs Research forecasts the U.S. robotaxi market will grow from roughly $3 billion in 2027 to $48 billion in 2035.

Waymo now has paying customers in three more American cities. The company, owned by Google's parent Alphabet, quietly rolled out driverless rides in San Diego, Tampa and Denver in late May 2026. Denver is a first for the company in Colorado.

Passengers in each new city can book through the Waymo app. For now, the company says it has dozens of cars on the road in each location, with plans to scale to hundreds.

What is Waymo actually putting on the road?

Waymo's newest vehicle is called the Ojai. It is built on a minivan-style frame made by Chinese automaker Zeekr, assembled at a factory in Arizona, and fitted with automatic sliding doors, three large interior screens and an entertainment system that connects to Google's Gemini AI assistant. The whole package runs on Waymo's sixth-generation self-driving technology.

Waymo's full fleet across 14 cities now tops 4,000 vehicles. The company delivers over 500,000 rides a week in the United States and wants to pass the 1 million-per-week mark before 2027.

Where does Zoox fit in?

Zoox is a distant second for now. The Amazon-owned company currently runs its only paid service in Las Vegas. Its vehicles have an unusual look: compact, roughly toaster-shaped, with no traditional front or back.

Zoox says it will start supervised testing in Houston and San Diego, which would bring it to 12 markets total. A free trial service in San Francisco exists for a limited group of users, though the company has not announced when it will charge for rides there. First reported by CNBC, both companies made their announcements ahead of a Tesla event where the electric-car maker was expected to reveal details about its own driverless Cybercab and a planned ride-hailing service.

Should ordinary riders be concerned about safety?

Self-driving cars can struggle in bad weather, road construction and power outages. There have been documented cases of robotaxis blocking traffic or needing first responders to physically move them.

Labor groups argue the technology threatens jobs in transport and delivery. Safety advocates want companies to publish standardised mileage and crash data so the public can judge the real-world record for themselves.

For anyone considering a ride, a few things to keep in mind: always confirm your booking through the official Waymo app rather than any third-party service, know that you cannot tip or talk a driverless car out of a difficult situation, and check local news for any service issues before you travel in a new city.

Common questions

How do I get a Waymo ride in a new city?

Open the Waymo app, enter your destination and request a ride exactly as you would with Uber or Lyft. In some markets Waymo rides are also bookable directly inside the Uber app.

Are robotaxis legal everywhere in the United States?

No. Each city and state sets its own rules. Waymo and Zoox each need separate permits for every market they enter, which is one reason expansion is gradual rather than nationwide overnight.