Waymo plans to launch a robotaxi service in London in 2026

Waymo said Wednesday it will offer a commercial robotaxi service in London in 2026, marking the Alphabet-owned company’s second international expansion after Tokyo.

The announcement comes after weeks of speculation fueled by some vacancies in London. Waymo already has ties to the UK: In 2019, the company acquired Latent Logic, a UK startup spun out of the University of Oxford’s computer science department that uses a form of machine learning called imitation learning to make self-driving car simulations more realistic. Waymo has launched an engineering center in Oxford as part of the acquisition.

In a blog post, Waymo said its all-electric Jaguar I-Pace vehicles – equipped with self-driving technology – will begin driving on public roads in London in the coming weeks. Waymo will start with human safety drivers behind the wheel before launching driverless testing, and eventually will invite the public to praise its robotaxis, a strategy it has used in other commercial markets such as Phoenix and San Francisco.

Waymo did not provide further details about when it will remove the human safety driver, or the size of the test fleet. Waymo spokesman Ethan Teicher confirmed that the company intends to operate a self-driving car service for public commuters next year.

When this robotaxi service launches in 2026, it will depend on the UK government finalizing the approval process for these operations.

Waymo has increasingly tapped partners to share the burden of operating its robotaxi service, and similarly plans to use Moove, which already operates its autonomous vehicles (AVs) in Phoenix, to handle fleet operations in London.

In Austin and Atlanta, its partner Uber splits the responsibilities of owning and operating a fleet of autonomous vehicles, handling the charging, maintenance and cleaning of the autonomous vehicles, and managing access to robotaxis via its app. Meanwhile, Waymo is monitoring autonomous technology and operations, including roadside assistance and certain aspects of rider support.

Waymo has ramped up its testing and commercial operations over the past two years, spreading beyond its initial market of Phoenix to several other US cities, including Austin, Atlanta, Los Angeles and San Francisco. The company also plans to offer commercial robotaxi service in Miami, Nashville, and Washington, D.C.