WAYMO TURNS ON DRIVERLESS RIDES IN SAN DIEGO, TAMPA AND DENVER

🚨 Waymo is now running driverless rides in San Diego, Tampa and Denver.

CNBC reports Alphabet's Waymo has expanded commercial service into three new cities, including its first operations in Colorado. Each launch starts with dozens of robotaxis and plans for "hundreds over time," per a Waymo spokesperson. Riders hail through the Waymo app, and in some markets through Uber.

The scale behind it: over 4,000 vehicles across 14 U.S. cities, and more than 500,000 paid rides every week. Waymo wants to cross 1 million rides by the end of 2026.

📈 Amazon's Zoox is moving too, but from further back. It will start testing its toaster-shaped vehicles in Houston and San Diego with human drivers on board, taking it to 12 U.S. markets. Its only paid service today is Las Vegas. San Francisco is free, for select riders, with no paid launch date given.

The prize is the reason for the land grab. Goldman Sachs Research forecasts the U.S. robotaxi market at about $3 billion next year, $19 billion by 2030 and $48 billion by 2035.

And the announcements landed just ahead of a planned Tesla event expected to detail the Cybercab and its Robotaxi service.

Not everyone is cheering. Labor leaders say autonomous vehicles will wipe out transportation jobs. Safety advocates want crash and mileage data disclosed and standardized. CNBC notes the vehicles have struggled with bad weather, blackouts and construction, in some cases causing gridlock or needing first responders to move them by hand.

Would you get in one tonight if it pulled up cheaper than an Uber?

#Waymo #Zoox #Tesla #robotaxi #causeanuproar