Waymo plans to boost self-driving fleet to 20K vehicles by next yr: report | Latest Tech News
Waymo is reportedly planning to boost the scale of its robotaxi fleet to 20,000 vehicles by the end of next yr – a large increase meant to fuel the Alphabet-owned firm’s nationwide growth.
The self-driving car company is aiming to double the scale of its fleet to 8,000 automobiles by the end of this yr – up from its at present stage of roughly 4,000, Semafor reported, citing people acquainted with the matter.
The biz hopes to hit 20,000 automobiles by the end of next yr.
The Waymo Ojai autonomous vehicle, a Chinese-made electric vehicle manufactured by Zeekr, travels in visitors along a metropolis road in Los Angeles earlier this month. REUTERS
To pay for the major growth, Waymo is tapping into a $5 billion loan that was announced on its web site earlier this month.
The money “will accelerate the continued expansion of our fully autonomous ride-hailing service across the United States and internationally,” according to Waymo.
A Waymo spokesperson declined to remark.
As The Post reported earlier this week, Waymo’s growth plans rely closely on the introduction of powder-blue “Ojai” vans – a rebranded model of a vehicle made by Zeekr, a unit of the Chinese Communist Party-linked Geely Holding Group.
Waymo imports the vehicle “shell” from China and then provides its own self-driving software program and sensors at a plant in Arizona.
Waymo is anticipated to import about 5,100 Ojai vehicles by the end of this yr, more than doubling the scale of its current fleet that principally consists of Jaguar I-Pace SUVs, according to data from research firm MoffittNathanson.
The Ojais are already energetic on the streets of Los Angeles, San Francisco and Phoenix and are slated to roll out in more cities by the end of the yr.
The tie-up with Zeekr has drawn scrutiny on Capitol Hill, with lawmakers and security consultants warning that it may threaten the US auto industry and even pose a potential national security risk.
A Waymo driverless vehicle is examined on Spring Street in SoHo, Manhattan, in 2023. Billy Becerra / NY Post
Existing Commerce Department guidelines have banned the import or sale of any “connected vehicles” or self-driving software program made in China or Russia beginning in model yr 2027, with a related ban on {hardware} set to take impact for model yr 2030.
Efforts to formalize the ban through laws are underway in the House and Senate.
Waymo told The Post that it “strongly supports” both the Commerce Department’s guidelines and pending laws in Congress.
The company “actively takes steps to ensure that they are in compliance with the government’s connected vehicle rules,” a spokesperson added.
Elsewhere, Waymo is actively testing robotaxis made by Hyundai as half of a multi-year partnership, with plans to add those vehicles to its fleet in the close to future.
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