Uber and Waymo have officially launched their autonomous ride-hailing service in Atlanta, marking the second city in their strategic partnership that's reshaping urban transportation.
The Atlanta service, which began on June 24, 2025, allows riders to request fully autonomous, all-electric Jaguar I-PACE vehicles through the Uber app across approximately 65 square miles of the city. The expansion follows the successful March 2025 launch in Austin, Texas, where autonomous vehicles quickly gained consumer acceptance, now accounting for about 20% of all Uber rides in that market.
"We're seeing positive signals with the vast majority of Uber riders choosing to ride with a Waymo autonomous vehicle when given the opportunity, and most riders have been rating their trip as 5-stars," an Uber spokesperson noted. The service maintains the same pricing structure as traditional UberX, Uber Comfort, or Uber Comfort Electric rides, though passengers are not prompted to tip.
The partnership represents a significant evolution in the relationship between the two companies, which had previously been embroiled in litigation over autonomous driving technology. Under the current arrangement, Uber manages fleet operations including cleaning, maintenance, and charging of the vehicles, while Waymo oversees the autonomous driving technology and rider assistance.
Waymo currently operates more than 1,500 autonomous vehicles providing over 250,000 rides weekly across San Francisco, Los Angeles, Phoenix, and Austin. The company has demonstrated impressive safety statistics, with a 2025 peer-reviewed study finding that Waymo vehicles experience 82% fewer collisions with bicycles and motorcycles and 92% fewer collisions with pedestrians compared to human drivers.
The expansion comes amid intensifying competition in the autonomous transportation sector. Tesla recently began limited trials of its autonomous taxi service in Austin, while Waymo has announced plans to launch in Washington D.C. in 2026 and is currently testing in Miami and New York City. Industry analysts view these developments as evidence that autonomous ride-hailing is transitioning from experimental technology to mainstream commercial service.