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Waymo has its sights set on London. The Alphabet-owned company just confirmed it’ll be launching a commercial robotaxi service in the UK capital in 2026. That makes London the second international city on Waymo’s list, following Tokyo.
If you’re wondering what that means for Londoners (and, let’s be real, the rest of us watching from afar), here’s the outlook: driverless cabs cruising through London’s streets—eventually. But let’s start with what’s happening now.
What’s the plan?
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In the next few weeks, Waymo’s all-electric Jaguar I-Pace vehicles, packed with its self-driving tech, will begin driving on public roads in London. Don’t expect a ghost in the driver’s seat just yet—these trips will include human safety drivers for the time being.
Like they’ve done in cities like Phoenix and San Francisco, Waymo’s taking a measured approach:
- First: Testing with safety drivers
- Then: Removing the safety drivers when regulations allow
- Finally: Opening up to public riders via a robotaxi service in 2026
The big milestone—launching the full robotaxi experience in 2026—is dependent on the UK government finalizing its approval process. Until then, it’s a lot of careful road-sharing and regulations-checking.
Waymo’s UK roots go deeper than today’s news
This isn’t Waymo’s first step into British soil. Back in 2019, they acquired Latent Logic, an Oxford-based startup spun out of the university’s computer science department. The company worked on imitation learning—basically, helping computers learn how humans drive—to improve simulation for autonomous cars.
That acquisition wasn’t just for tech; it also led to an engineering hub in Oxford. So in a way, Waymo’s been slowly laying the groundwork for this London rollout for years.
Who’s helping out?
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Waymo’s not doing this alone. It’s partnering with Moove, the same company already helping manage its autonomous fleet in Phoenix. Moove will handle the London fleet too—things like charging, maintenance, cleaning, and operations.
That’s part of a model Waymo’s using across cities. In Austin and Atlanta, it teams up with Uber, dividing responsibilities between tech and operations. Uber handles day-to-day fleet stuff, while Waymo keeps an eye on the autonomous tech and rider support.
What’s not yet clear?
While everything sounds promising, there are still a few unknowns:
- Waymo hasn’t said how big the London test fleet will be
- There’s no timeline for when the safety drivers might be removed
- And of course, the 2026 public launch depends on UK regulatory go-ahead
But even with some blanks left to fill, this is a real step forward for driverless tech in the UK.
Why it matters
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London’s not an easy place to launch in. It’s dense, historic, and loaded with unique traffic patterns. If Waymo can make it work there, it signals growing confidence in their tech.
And for a city constantly dealing with traffic and pollution, the idea of electric, self-driving ride-hails might offer some long-term promise—not just convenience, but potentially safer, cleaner streets.
So, 2026 is still a ways off. But the autonomous future in the UK just got a whole lot closer.
Stay tuned—those Jaguar I-Paces could be cruising your street sooner than you think.
Keywords: Waymo, Self-driving, London, 2026, Robotaxi, Jaguar I-Pace, UK, Moove, Autonomous vehicles
