Union declares “state of emergency” over robotaxis
A union representing app drivers and couriers working in the gig economy has warned of an “unprecedented jobs crisis” faced because of the planned introduction of driverless taxis in London this year. In a post on Facebook, the App Drivers and Couriers Union declared a “state of emergency” for 100,000 London private hire drivers. Its […]
Waymo begins fully autonomous operations with sixth-generation Driver
Waymo is now running its 6th-generation Driver without safety drivers on public roads, marking the beginning of fully autonomous operations with the company’s latest and most cost-effective hardware stack, according to Electrek. The announcement, authored by Waymo VP of Engineering Satish Jeyachandran, confirms that the 6th-generation system, first unveiled in August 2024, is now validated […]
Waymo robotaxis accused of using London black cab EV charging points
Waymo is blaming ‘human error’ after self-driving vehicles took electric taxi charging points reserved for London’s black cabs. According to The Telegraph, London’s taxi drivers have clashed with Waymo after its vehicles were found taking up electric charging bays reserved for black cabs. Taxi groups said there had been multiple cases of Waymo’s electric vehicles using dedicated e-taxi […]
TRL director to discuss ‘safe design for life’ at Mature Drivers conference
Professor Richard Cuerden, TRL’s director of safety management at TRL, will discuss the evidence linking driver age and collision risk associated with ‘newer’ vehicle design. Hosted by Road Safety GB, with support from GEM Motoring Assist, The Road Safety Trust and Waymo, the Mature Drivers Conference will be held at Austin Court, Birmingham, on 28 April […]
Waymo and Tesla defend AV safety record as US Congress examines standards
Tesla and Waymo executives have been forced to defend their companies’ safety records as US senators pressed them on recent software failures, crash incidents, and transparency concerns. It comes as Congress considers numerous pieces of legislation aiming to establish national safety standards governing autonomous vehicles, says ABC7 News. Roughly half of the US states now […]
Waymo raises US$16 billion investment round
Waymo has raised a US$16 billion investment round, valuing the company at US$126 billion post-money. In addition to Alphabet’s strong sustained support as Waymo’s majority investor, the financing was led by Dragoneer Investment Group, DST Global, and Sequoia Capital, and included significant investments from Andreessen Horowitz and Mubadala Capital as well as Bessemer Venture Partners, […]
Waymo to launch driverless taxis in UK in September
Waymo, the US driverless car firm, said it hopes to be operating a robotaxi service in London as soon as September this year. The UK government has said it plans to change regulations in the second half of 2026 to enable driverless taxis to operate in the city but has not given a specific date, […]
Waymo driverless taxi filmed driving in London
A video circulating on Instagram shows what appears to be a Waymo driverless taxi being filmed while driving through London traffic. In the short clip posted on DM News, a man filming from inside another vehicle captures the autonomous car travelling in the middle lane of a London road, positioned next to a double-decker bus. The vehicle’s unusual […]
London’s mayor says he’ll minimise driverless effect on taxi trade
The Mayor of London has made a promise to work with the taxi industry and unions to minimise the impact of driverless vehicle technology on jobs and livelihoods. The pledge comes after cab drivers called for protection as Waymo prepares to launch its driverless service in the capital, with them warning they might be “run […]
Waymo announces 19 London Boroughs (and the City of London) as testing sites for robotaxis
Waymo robotaxis have been seen for the first time on London’s. The cars are taking part in trials ahead of the start of the fully fledged operation to pick up passengers in 2026. Waymo, which operates under Google’s parent firm Alphabet Inc, posted an image on social media showing one of its self-driving Jaguar I-PACE […]