Waymo och mycket mer

Perhaps the clearest sign that Waymo is solidifying its lead in the robotaxi race is the behind-the-scenes look they offered into their “robotaxi factory” in Mesa, AZ, where production is being scaled to meet growing deployment goals. At the same time, Waymo surpassed 10 million paid rides and released new research showing that its autonomous system significantly reduces crashes and improves safety for vulnerable road users compared to human drivers.

In more unexpected news, Waymo revealed a new partnership with Toyota—a move that could signal ambitions to bring its self-driving technology to privately owned vehicles. Still, even the Waymo sun has its clouds: the company recently issued a software recall affecting its current fleet.

Amazon-backed Zoox has had a similarly busy news cycle. The company announced plans to significantly scale up robotaxi production in the U.S., aiming to become a major player in the sector. Its test fleet has begun rolling out in Los Angeles and Atlanta, as part of a phased deployment. However, Zoox also faced a software recall due to unexpected vehicle behavior, which has attracted regulatory attention.

Meanwhile, Uber continues to pursue strategic alliances. Most notably, it has launched a new collaboration with Volkswagen to develop a shared robotaxi service to be deployed in “the thousands” in the U.S. Uber has also entered into a partnership with May Mobility to roll out autonomous ride-hailing services, staring in Arlington,TX. On the global front, Uber recently formed partnerships with Pony.ai and Momenta, for future deployment in Europe and the Middle East.

In an expansion beyond robotaxis, Uber is also launching fixed-route shuttles in several U.S. cities—initially for manually driven vehicles, but a move that signals an ambition to embed AVs into public transit–style systems.

In the autonomous trucking segment, Aurora has experienced both progress and setbacks. The company recently launched its commercial self-driving truck service in Texas, only to reintroduce human safety drivers weeks later due to concerns from regulators and customers. Meanwhile, Aurora’s co-founder and AV pioneer Sterling Anderson has departed to take a top product role at GM.

As expected, Tesla is also in the spotlight. The long-promised robotaxi launch is approaching, with Elon Musk recently reiterating a June reveal in Austin—although with modestly scaled back ambitions.

External observers note that Tesla’s upcoming service will likely depend heavily on remote human supervision (teleoperations), raising questions about the extent of autonomy. U.S. regulators are closely monitoring the situation and have asked Tesla to clarify key details around safety, operations, and oversight before any deployment receives approval.

Finally, it’s always worth reflecting on how far we’ve come. A decade ago, Singapore was seen as a global AV pioneer with bold ambitions to go “all-in.” Today, the country’s approach is more pragmatic, focusing on narrow, high-impact use cases where automation delivers tangible value—often in the context of shared mobility systems.