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Read the storyWaymo
Company — Alphabet autonomous-driving company behind the Waymo Driver and Waymo ride-hailing service. Coverage follows driverless technology, safety, deployment and commercialization.
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At a glance
Waymo is Alphabet’s autonomous-driving company. It develops the Waymo Driver and operates a commercial autonomous ride-hailing service. Coverage follows the technology’s safety record, fleet operations, funding and expansion, including distribution partnerships such as Uber.
- Origins
- Google Self-Driving Car Project, 2009
- Company
- Waymo, an Alphabet business since 2016
- Technology
- Waymo Driver
- Service
- Autonomous ride-hailing
- Reference
- Waymo ↗
Reviewed 19 October 2026. Dates retain the precision of the source; retrospective disclosures are identified in the event. Annualized revenue is reported, not audited. Ride totals, equity financing and debt are different measures.
Company milestones
Revenue, funding, product launches and major company events, newest first. Expand the earlier milestones for more history.
Closes its first debt financing
Waymo announces a $5 billion term loan to support business expansion, complementing its earlier equity financing.
Source: Waymo ↗Ojai begins carrying riders
The new vehicle joins Waymo’s commercial fleet, following testing and integration of the next-generation autonomous-driving platform.
Source: Waymo
Show earlier milestonesHide earlier milestones2026–2009 · 11 milestones
Earlier revenue, financing and company milestones.
Raises $16 billion in equity funding
Waymo announces a $16 billion investment round at a $126 billion post-money valuation, with Alphabet remaining its majority investor.
Source: Waymo ↗Reported annualized revenue exceeds $350M
TIME reports the January run rate retrospectively in April. This is a reported annualized level, not audited full-year revenue.
Source: TIMEDelivers 15M rides during 2025
Waymo’s year-end review records annual ride volume, illustrating commercial expansion beyond the initial Phoenix service.
Source: WaymoLaunches on Uber in Austin
Waymo’s autonomous vehicles become available to Austin riders through Uber, adding a new distribution channel for the service.
Source: Uber ↗Closes a $5.6B equity round
Alphabet leads the oversubscribed financing, with participation from existing institutional investors to support service expansion.
Source: WaymoRaises $2.5B in investment
The second external funding round supports its autonomous-driving technology and commercialization, following the first external round in 2020.
Source: WaymoOpens fully autonomous rides to the public
Waymo opens its driverless ride-hailing service to the general public in the Phoenix area.
Source: Waymo ↗Raises its first external investment round
Waymo announces an initial $2.25B round with outside investors, establishing a financing base beyond Alphabet alone.
Source: WaymoIntroduces Waymo One
The company launches its public ride-hailing service after its early-rider program.
Source: Waymo ↗Becomes Waymo within Alphabet
Google’s self-driving project becomes Waymo, a separate Alphabet business focused on autonomous-driving technology.
Source: Waymo ↗Begins as Google’s self-driving car project
A small engineering team starts work on autonomous driving at Google.
Source: Waymo ↗
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