Waymo to Launch Driverless Ride-Hailing in Germany by 2027

Waymo, the autonomous driving unit of Alphabet Inc., will launch driverless ride-hailing services in Germany by the end of 2027. This expansion represents the company's first entry into the European Union and its third international market, following a broader strategy to scale robotaxi operations in cities such as London and Tokyo.

To prepare for the commercial launch, Waymo will deploy a small fleet of all-electric Jaguar I-PACE vehicles in Munich in the coming weeks. These vehicles will be manually driven to create high-definition maps and validate software against local driving conditions. While the company has registered operations in Spain, France, and the Netherlands, it has not yet announced commercial plans for those nations.

The German Federal Ministry of Transport expressed support for the initiative. Parliamentary state secretary Christian Hirte stated that autonomous driving is the key to future mobility and emphasized that Europe must not only use these technologies but also develop and operate them locally.