Waymo begins rolling out new Ojai robotaxi in three cities

Waymo has officially begun giving select riders in Los Angeles, Phoenix, and San Francisco access to the Ojai, its newest all-electric, minivan-style robotaxi—defined as an autonomous vehicle used for ride-hailing services. The vehicle is manufactured by Zeekr, a brand owned by China’s Geely Holding Group. This launch arrives as Waymo navigates operational challenges. The company recently suspended robotaxi service on freeways in Los Angeles, Miami, Phoenix, and San Francisco to improve how its vehicles behave in construction zones. Additionally, Waymo paused services in Atlanta, Georgia and San Antonio, Texas to address problems with flooding in those cities.

The rollout follows a multi-year development process. Zeekr and Waymo, which is owned by parent company Alphabet, partnered in 2021 and showcased a concept of the vehicle in late 2022. After testing a prototype, Waymo evaluated a production-intent version of the vehicle on public roads. Designed in Sweden and manufactured in China, the minivan is based on the SEA-M architecture, Zeekr’s vehicle platform for mobility products. The Ojai is equipped with Waymo’s sixth-generation system, which features 13 cameras, four lidar sensors—light detection and ranging sensors used for autonomous navigation—and six radar units. This sixth-generation system is designed to be modular, allowing it to be integrated into two announced vehicle models: the Zeekr minivan and the Hyundai Ioniq 5.

The Ojai is designed to handle the use and abuse of hundreds of thousands of riders. Waymo announced on Thursday that it is currently scaling toward a capacity of tens of thousands of units annually, starting with the Ojai and followed by future vehicle integration with partner Hyundai. This expansion builds on Waymo’s current fleet of 3,700 Jaguar I-Pace vehicles and operational insights from delivering 500,000 paid robotaxi rides every week. While the initial rollout is limited to select customers receiving free rides for feedback, Waymo plans to eventually expand access to the Ojai to more riders and cities.

Why it matters

The launch of the blue-hued minivan might not wipe the slate clean for Waymo, but it does give the company a real chance at scale and revenue generation.