Google’s robotaxi subsidiary Waymo will bring its services to Washington, D.C., next year.
Waymo announced Tuesday that starting in 2026, D.C. residents can order an autonomous taxi via the Waymo One app.
“The U.S. and Waymo are leading the rest of the world into our fully autonomous driving future. Waymo One — the world’s first fully autonomous ride-hailing service — currently provides over 200,000 paid passenger trips each week, and our technology continues to demonstrate strong safety performance in the areas we operate compared to humans,” Waymo said in a statement.
Waymo added that D.C. residents will start seeing more robotaxis in the DMV as the company tests the technology. Those test rides will be conducted with a human behind the wheel, who can give feedback to Waymo.
Additionally, Waymo will hold training sessions with local law enforcement, first responders and community leaders to prepare residents for the robotaxis.
The company will also meet with local lawmakers to “formalize the legal framework” to implement robotaxi services in D.C. Currently, D.C. does not allow autonomous vehicles to operate without a human behind the wheel.
Waymo One currently operates in San Francisco, Los Angeles and Phoenix. The company also provides robotaxi rides to customers in Atlanta and Austin through its partnership with Uber.
The D.C. expansion will be Waymo’s first expansion into the Northeast. The company also plans to expand into Miami in 2026.
The planned expansion comes after a successful 2024 for Waymo, which saw several key expansions. The company expanded its operational borders in San Francisco, Los Angeles and Phoenix and reportedly completed 4 million rides in 2024.
