Uber to Austin: Prepare for Waymo

Currently, Waymo is not open to the audience in Austin. Vehicles without a driver for the company Only available for a small group of people who joined the waiting list To become early service laboratories. Waymo did not say when the service will open to the broader audience, but the reading between this Uber advertisement lines, it seems close. (Waymo spokesman did not respond to a request for comment.)

When launched, Waymo vehicles will be available exclusively on Uber in Austin. The two companies announced for the first time their partnership to put a Waymo roboto on the Uber app in 2023. They played a short -term pilot in Phoenix and is now planning to launch the first official version in Austin, with Atlanta to follow.

Ridehail, Waymo One, will not run in Austin. Customers who open Waymo One will be re -directed to the Uber app.

To prepare, Uber is asking Austin customers to point out their interest that they are passengers in the entire Waymo vehicles (the company “Rider Only”). In the application settings within “Preferences”, customers can choose to join the “interest menu” to get updates about the launch of Waymo and increase their chance to reach an independent vehicle when starting the service.

The shared vehicles that carry a brand throughout Austin without a driver will also be discovered behind the wheel. Vehicles will only work in geographical areas with an area of ​​37 square miles from the city, which includes Hyde Park, Montopolis and the city center.

The company says that Uber customers who get pair with Waymo “will pay the same prices as Uberx, Uber Green, Uber Comfort, or Uber Comfort Electric.” (Passing prices for all Ridehailaing, Robo or otherwise, fluctuating based on traffic and time today.) These prices will be provided in advance before customers accept the trip, and once the car arrives, customers can open and start riding from Uber program. (There is also the “Start Ride” button in the car.)

The two companies will share the responsibilities of operating and managing a fleet of independent vehicles. Uber will use contractors to clean vehicles, repair, and other public warehouses, while Waymo will deal with road side (when robots stumbled) and customer service. It is clear that it will participate in the costs and revenues produced by the Robotaxi service, although the two companies refused to share the division.

Waymo currently runs its Waymo One Ridehail service in San Francisco, Phenix and Los Angeles; I recently arrived at the work teacher 150,000 flights every week In all three cities. Studies have shown that Waymo has Best customer keeping One of the Human Ridehail services such as Uber and Lyft.