Lyft and Waymo are partnering to bring robotaxis to Nashville

Waymo has struck a woody with ride-hailing institution Lyft to motorboat a robotaxi work successful Nashville successful 2026.

The institution said Wednesday it volition statesman investigating its fleet of all-electric and autonomous Jaguar I-Pace vehicles successful the Nashville country successful the coming months and volition unfastened up the work to the nationalist adjacent year.

The concern statement announced Wednesday comes arsenic Waymo ramps up its robotaxi enlargement from its archetypal commercialized marketplace of Phoenix to Atlanta, Austin, Los Angeles, and San Francisco. The Alphabet-owned institution has antecedently announced plans to bring its robotaxis to Miami, Washington D.C., Dallas, and Denver.

The woody besides illustrates Waymo’s tendency to determination beyond being a sole relation and towards being an autonomous conveyance exertion provider. Earlier this year, Waymo launched a robotaxi work with Uber successful Atlanta and Austin. Under that arrangement, Waymo is liable for conveyance testing, roadside assistance, and definite aspects of rider support, portion Uber manages fleet services specified arsenic conveyance cleaning, maintenance, inspections, charging, and depot operations done a institution called Moove Cars.

Waymo’s statement with Lyft successful Nashville is similar. Lyft volition besides grip fleet services, specified arsenic conveyance readiness and maintenance, infrastructure, and depot operations done its wholly owned subsidiary Flexdrive. Lyft said it’s investing successful a purpose-built AV installation to enactment the fleet. 

The Waymo-Lyft concern successful Nashville has 1 cardinal quality from the company’s narration with Uber successful Atlanta and Austin. In Nashville, robotaxi customers volition beryllium capable to entree robotaxis successful 2 ways. Users volition initially hail rides straight done the Waymo app. Once the work expands, Waymo volition besides dispatch its autonomous vehicles for matched rides connected the Lyft app.

That’s dissimilar its concern with Uber successful Atlanta and Austin. In those cities, each imaginable customers person to usage the Uber app successful hopes of being matched with a robot, not a quality driver.

Lyft and Waymo person partnered before, though ne'er astatine scale. In 2019, Waymo linked up with Lyft to bring a fistful of self-driving vehicles onto the ride-hailing web successful Phoenix arsenic the institution ramped up its commercialized robotaxi service.