Lyft launches driverless Waymo robotaxi service in Nashville
Lyft has begun offering Waymo’s fully autonomous taxis to riders in Nashville, handling fleet upkeep and depot operations through its Flexdrive unit.
Waymo’s driverless taxis are now accessible to riders in Nashville, with Lyft acting as the service operator for fleet preparation, maintenance, and depot logistics via its wholly owned Flexdrive arm. Customers can hail a robotaxi directly from the Waymo app or, when a vehicle is free, through Lyft’s app, which will match them with a Waymo car. This deployment is Lyft’s inaugural entry into a commercial robotaxi network that runs without a human driver, following its 2021 sale of the Level 5 autonomous-vehicle unit to Toyota’s Woven Planet Holdings for $550 million.
Jeremy Bird, Lyft’s executive vice president of growth, indicated that the firm will concentrate on deepening its Waymo partnership in Nashville and expanding its Baidu collaboration in London during the coming year. He emphasized that future market choices will depend on regulatory openness to autonomous vehicles, signaling Lyft’s shift toward a more global, hybrid AV-human ride-hailing model.
Why it matters
Lyft’s entry into driverless taxi service shows major ride-hailing firms moving toward fully autonomous fleets.
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