The brief
- About 500,000 paid rides a week in ten US metros in mid-2026; aims for 1 million a week by end of 2026.
- Raised $16B at a $126B valuation in February 2026, mostly from Alphabet.
- Peer-reviewed studies show far fewer injury crashes than human drivers in the same areas.
Technical approach
Lidar, radar and cameras
Lidar measures exact 3D distance, radar works in rain and fog, cameras read signs and lights. If one sensor fails, the others still see.
Detailed prior maps
Each city is mapped in detail first, so the car can focus on moving things and notice when something has changed.
Learned perception and behaviour
Neural networks spot objects, predict what they'll do and plan a path, trained on real miles and billions of simulated ones.
6th-gen Driver cuts cost
The sixth-gen Driver uses 13 cameras, 4 lidars and 6 radars, fewer sensors than before, to make new cars cheaper to equip.
Waymo, one program
Updated 26d ago
Research & demos
- Dec 2024paperComparison of Waymo rider-only crash rates with human benchmarks (with Swiss Re) (opens waymo.com)
Insurance-claims study showing far fewer property-damage and injury claims than human drivers.
- Oct 2024
Tested using a multimodal AI language model to turn camera input directly into driving decisions.
- Aug 2019
One of the largest public autonomous-driving datasets, widely used for perception and motion-prediction research.
Open technical problems
- Cost and pace of expansionActive research
Each new city needs mapping, testing, depots and local approval; profits depend on cheaper hardware and busy cars.
- Rare-event behaviourActive research
Mistakes such as passing stopped school buses led to software recalls; unusual and emergency scenes are still hard.
Upcoming catalysts
- Dec2026Target of 1 million paid rides per weekWaymo Oneby ~3 mo
- 2027Tokyo rides with Nihon Kotsu and GOWaymo Oneby ~15 mo
- Q42027Munich launch, Waymo's first in Germany (announced for late 2027)Waymo Oneby ~15 mo
- 2028Singapore serviceWaymo Oneby ~27 mo
Peers
Company & funding
- Valuation
- $126BAlphabet-owned
- Raised
- $24Bdisclosed private rounds
- Last round
- Series DFeb 2026
- Parent
- Alphabet
- HQ
- US
- Founded
- 2009
- Website
- waymo.com (opens waymo.com)
Post-money valuation, log scale
| Date | Round | Amount | Post-money | Lead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 2026 | Series D | $16B | $126B | Dragoneer, DST Global, Sequoia Capital |
| Oct 2024 | Series C | $5.6B | $45B | Alphabet |
| Mar 2020 | External round | $2.3B | — | Silver Lake, Mubadala, Canada Pension Plan |
Partners & customers
- Partner
Waymo rides offered via Uber in Austin and Atlanta
- Supplier
Ioniq 5 vehicles for the fleet
- Supplier
Purpose-built minivan platform (Ojai)
- Supplier
I-PACE vehicles, the core of the current fleet