Science
Waymo begins welcoming public driverless riders in San Diego
Waymo began welcoming its first public riders in San Diego on September 1, 2026, through a rolling invitation process across a 50-square-mile area. The launch follows a year of human testing and a July employee trial.
Why it mattersLocal travelers gain a new driverless ride-hailing option as autonomous transport expands to more cities.
How we got here
- Waymo indicated plans to launch driverless rides in San Diego. Fox5Sandiego
- California regulators approved Waymo's expansion to offer rides in San Diego. CBS News
- Waymo began welcoming its first public riders in San Diego, with access to expand gradually. Waymo
What's likely next
- Waymo said it would steadily extend access and work toward opening the service to everyone; it did not give a date for that broader opening.
All coverage
The coverage
Analysis & opinion
- Waymo is scaling fast: Here’s what the fleet data showsTechcrunch · Sep 24
Something wrong or missing? Tell us.
More stories
New · Pennsylvania reports 890 measles cases across 39 counties
How many measles cases will there be in the U.S. in 2026? ↑4k: 98%
New · SpaceX puts Starship into orbit for the first time before early return
How many SpaceX Starship launches will reach space in 2026? 5: 46%
New · Anthropic prospectus details $42 billion loss and $2 trillion target
What will Anthropic's IPO valuation be? $1.75–$2.00T: 44%
New · OpenAI shelves Astra 6.1 over internal scope and authorization failures
GPT Astra 6.1 released by Oct 31: Unlikely (30%) ▼ from 74%
New · SpaceX Starship reaches orbit on Flight 14 despite engine shutdown
At least 10 people live in a self-sufficient Mars colony for at least one Earth year before Jan. 1, 2050: Unlikely (29%) ▼ from 59%