While its rivals have been caught in perpetual trials or forced to close entirely due to a dry coffers, Waymo has quietly built up a legitimate robotaxi business that continues to grow and evolve. And today it showed some numbers that underline how far ahead it is from the rest of the industry.
Chief among them is the number 4 million, which is the number of driverless rides the company provided in the three cities it operates in: Phoenix, San Francisco and Los Angeles. Waymo says it has provided a total of 5 million driverless rides in its three key markets, meaning almost all of its growth came this year alone.
Waymo's service area is small but growing: The company says it serves 500 square miles cumulatively in its three major cities, as well as Austin, where it still operates with a waiting list. The company plans to launch in Atlanta and Miami and recently said it would test its vehicles in Japan.
Four million driverless trips in 2024
Waymo users spent a total of 11 million hours in the company's autonomous vehicles. And since switching to electric vehicles only, Waymo has helped avoid more than 6 million kilograms of CO2 emissions. (Assuming an avoided emissions rate of 237 g/passenger-mile, a vehicle occupancy of 1.5 passengers, and an average trip length of 4.1 miles.)
Today, every Waymo customer will receive their own personalized year in review through the company's Waymo One app. Think of it as a Spotify Wrapped for fully autonomous vehicles. They'll see their own statistics, including miles traveled, emissions avoided, favorite destinations, and more.
The most popular destinations in each city this year were Sky Harbor International Airport in Phoenix, the Ferry Building in San Francisco and The Grove shopping center in Los Angeles. The company only began providing 24/7 service to the Phoenix airport in August 2024, so its ranking as the top destination in that city demonstrates how important airport service will be to the company.
The fact that Waymo has facilitated 4 million trips in three cities, while only serving one airport, is quite surprising and could speak to the company's future prospects as its technology continues to mature. Airports are a major source of revenue for human-powered transportation companies like Uber and Lyft.
But Waymo also faces an uncertain future with increasing regulatory and financial pressures. Tariffs on Chinese vehicles and software could hamper its growth plans. President-elect Donald Trump is said to want a regulatory framework for autonomous vehicles – whatever that means. But cutting costs will be increasingly important for Waymo as it looks to expand into new cities.
Waymo also faces an uncertain future with increasing regulatory and financial pressures.
Alphabet doesn't break out Waymo's costs in its earnings report, but its “Other Bets” unit, which includes the robotaxi company, generated $388 million in revenue in the year. third quarter of 2024compared to $297 million a year ago. And the unit's losses decreased slightly to $1.12 billion from $1.94 billion in the same period a year earlier. Alphabet recently led a $5.6 billion funding round for Waymo to help it cover costs as it contemplates its next phase of growth.
As you grow, pricing will become more of a challenge. So far, Waymo has settled into the “premium” tier of transportation services like Uber Black. It costs a lot to equip those modernized Jaguar I-Pace vehicles with all the sensors and hardware that help them navigate the roads autonomously. And the 175,000 weekly trips that Waymo makes are not enough to recover those costs.
Another challenge will be expanding the types of services it provides. At this time, it only offers trips to one airport, Phoenix. It will need to expand in its current and future markets if it wants to remain a viable mobility option. And you'll need to get more comfortable driving on the highway, which only happens in limited cases.
Security is also a big obstacle. While Waymo has published a number of studies indicating that its vehicles are safer than human drivers, there are still many outstanding questions about passenger safety. Waymo vehicles have been targeted harassment and vandalism. And at times they have come into conflict with emergency vehicles.
But Waymo has novelty on its side, and its customers often give it high marks for the ability to customize their rides, such as playing their own music and adjusting the temperature to their liking. It may be enough to propel the company into another big year in 2025.
