Uber Technologies is hoping to expose more people to driverless robotaxis, after it expanded its partnership agreement with Alphabet’s Google in a city in Texas.

Uber announced that on Tuesday that “Austin riders can be matched with a Waymo autonomous vehicle (AV) on the Uber app, making your next trip even more special.”

It comes after Waymo and Uber in September 2024 had said they would give riders access to Waymo vehicles via the Uber app in Austin, Texas and Atlanta starting early 2025, expanding a deal that had begun in Arizona in 2023.

Both companies at the time stated that once services begin Uber users would be able to be matched with a driverless Waymo for some trips. The deal essentially allowed riders to see Waymo rides offered through Uber’s app, and not on Waymo’s own app.

Waymo, Uber

Now the two firms have confirmed this service is now live in Austin, Texas, in a move that seems calculated to expose Waymo services to as broad a user base as possible.

Uber confirmed that in Austin, Waymo rides will only be available on the Uber app, and when a user request a ride, they can opt in for a Waymo robotaxi.

“Starting today, riders who request an UberX, Uber Green, Uber Comfort, or Uber Comfort Electric could be matched with a Waymo fully autonomous all-electric Jaguar I-PACE vehicle – at no additional cost,” said Uber. “Before a nearby Waymo vehicle is sent your way, you’ll have the option to accept or switch to a non-AV ride.”

Once the Waymo arrives, riders can unlock the vehicle, open the trunk, and start the trip – all from their Uber app. If assistance is needed at any time, riders will have access to 24/7 customer support, accessible in both the Uber app and inside the Waymo vehicle.

At launch, riders can travel across 37 square miles of Austin – from Hyde Park, to Downtown, to Montopolis – with plans to expand in the future.

And Uber confirmed that Atlanta is up next , with staff already taking fully autonomous trips with Waymo in that city, as it prepares to offer Waymo rides to the public there – only on Uber.

“At Uber, we’re reimagining how the world moves and building a future where autonomous vehicles and drivers work side by side to help make transportation more affordable, sustainable, and accessible for all,” the firm stated.

Waymo competition

It should be remembered Uber had sold off its own self-driving unit in 2020 following a 2018 incident in which one of its vehicles killed a pedestrian, and since then has relied on deals with Waymo, Cruise and SoftBank-backed UK start-up Wayve.

It should also be remembered that at one time Uber and Waymo were formerly bitter rivals after Waymo had accused Uber of conspiring to steal its technology.

But Waymo seems to be the last significant self-driving player left standing, and is currently serving more than 200,000 paid trips per week across San Francisco, Los Angeles and Phoenix.

General Motors axed its Cruise division in December 2024, while Amazon’s Zoox self-driving unit is still in a testing phase and expected to be available to the public sometime in 2025.

Tesla Cybercab

There is still another potential robotaxi player in the US market, namely Elon Musk’s Tesla.

In October 2024 Elon Musk had arrived almost an hour late for a launch event of the new low two-seater Cybercab, which he claimed was a “fully autonomous” vehicle with no steering wheel or pedals for drivers.

But investors were not impressed at the lack details and Musk’s unrealistic promise that the Cybercab would only cost $30,000, and consequently shares in Tesla fell nearly 6 percent to $238.77 the following day.

Tesla’s Cybercab model also faces a number of challenges before its promised ride-share launch in Austin, Texas in June this year.

Firstly, Tesla is being sued by the production company that helped make the Ryan Gosling film “Blade Runner 2049”, over Tesla using an AI-generated images to market the Cybercab.

And Tesla’s Cybercab is only a two seater, and will launch with human back-up operators for safety purposes – making it effectively a one seat option for potential passengers.