Waymo, the autonomous vehicle unit of Alphabet Inc., has received approval from the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) to expand its commercial robotaxi service further into Silicon Valley, including nearly all of San Jose.
In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Waymo announced the regulatory win but noted it won’t immediately alter its current operations. For now, the company continues to offer driverless ride-hailing services in all of San Francisco and parts of the Peninsula, with paying customers already able to request autonomous rides in cities like Mountain View, Palo Alto, Los Altos, and Sunnyvale.
“We’re very excited to share that the CPUC has approved our application to operate our fully autonomous commercial ride-hailing service in the South Bay and nearly all of San Jose!” — Waymo on X
With this approval, Waymo’s service area now spans roughly 85 square miles across San Francisco and Silicon Valley, solidifying its footprint as one of the most expansive autonomous transportation networks in the U.S.
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The company is also working to gain access to San Francisco International Airport (SFO). Although fully autonomous operations at the airport are not yet permitted, Waymo received a temporary permit in March to begin manual roadway mapping at the site. Trained drivers will operate the vehicles during this phase, laying the groundwork for eventual commercial deployment in and around the airport.
This expansion marks a significant milestone for Waymo as it scales its robotaxi fleet, which already operates in Los Angeles, Phoenix, and, most recently, Austin. According to the company, it now provides more than 250,000 paid autonomous rides each week across its various locations.
The CPUC’s approval not only boosts Waymo’s ambitions but also signals regulatory confidence in the safety and reliability of driverless vehicle technology. As Waymo eyes broader access across major transport hubs and suburban regions, the future of robotaxi transportation appears to be accelerating at full speed.
