On March 14, 2024, a Waymo self-driving Jaguar taxi drove on the streets of Los Angeles, California.
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letterWaymo, owned by Waymo, is eliminating the waitlist for its self-driving service in Los Angeles, its biggest expansion yet.
Starting Tuesday, anyone in Los Angeles can use the Waymo One app to hail a self-driving robotaxi across nearly 80 square miles in Los Angeles County, the company said. That includes the 300,000 Angelenos who have been on Waymo’s waiting list.
Los Angeles, with a population of more than 3.8 million, is the third and largest city where the company has fully launched its robo-taxi service. Following San Francisco, Waymo One opened across the city in June. The company launched the service in Phoenix in 2020.
“This is an exciting time and everyone in Los Angeles is welcome to participate,” Waymo co-CEO Tekedra Mawakana said in a press conference on Tuesday. “Our service has matured rapidly and our riders are enjoying fully autonomous driving. The many benefits. We are very grateful to all the first passengers in Los Angeles and we can’t wait to serve more passengers soon.”
The company has been rapidly expanding its operations over the last year thanks to additional financial support.
Waymo is closed This round of financing is US$5.6 billion The self-driving car company is owned by Google parent Alphabet, which led Waymo’s Series C investment. Early investors include Andreessen Horowitz, Fidelity, Perry Creek, Silver Lake, Tiger Global and T. Lowe Price.
The company said Tuesday it currently has more than 150,000 paid rides per week in its three markets through the Waymo One app. That’s up from 100,000 in August.
Waymo announced in September that it would partner with Uber to launch a robotaxi service in Austin, Texas, in 2025. Gilizek It’s equipped with custom sensors and artificial intelligence “drivers.” Waymo also recently agreed to a multi-year strategy Cooperation with Hyundai Motor This will add the Korean automaker’s Ioniq 5 electric vehicle to its robotaxi fleet.
Waymo One service has be hugged The suggestion was made by some women who had safety concerns about riding with unidentified human drivers. Parents also use it to send their messages Teenagers going to school.
watch: Waymo further accelerates competition after completing $5.6 billion in financing