Waymo, Alphabet’s autonomous driving subsidiary, has applied for a permit with the New York City Department of Transportation to begin testing its self-driving vehicles in Manhattan with a trained safety specialist behind the wheel.
If approved, this would mark the first time autonomous vehicles are officially tested under city oversight, despite previous limited Waymo operations in New York. In 2021, the company conducted test runs in the city, but those were limited to human-driven data collection and weather condition analysis.
The company said it has long-term plans to launch a commercial self-driving ride service in the city, although no specific timeline has been disclosed.
Waymo currently provides more than 250,000 driverless rides per week in cities like Los Angeles, San Francisco, Phoenix and Austin. Its expansion into New York, the country’s most densely populated and traffic-congested city, signals growing confidence in its autonomous systems. However, the move comes with legal hurdles.
New York State law prohibits fully driverless operations, requiring a human to be present and able to take control at any moment. In response, Waymo announced plans to advocate for changes to this law to enable future driverless service in the state.
Under current legislation, all companies — whether testing or offering commercial rides — must receive official approval from New York City to deploy autonomous vehicles, even if a human driver is onboard.
While Waymo's parent company Alphabet does not release separate financials for the unit, the segment that includes Waymo posted a $4.1 billion loss last year, despite receiving $5.6 billion in funding from Alphabet. Nevertheless, with Alphabet's overall net income reaching $100 billion in 2024, the investment represents a fraction of the tech giant’s financial portfolio.
The news prompted investor reaction, with shares of ride-hailing competitors Lyft and Uber falling after the announcement. Waymo has previously partnered with Uber to offer autonomous rides in Phoenix and Austin.
