Londoners can hire self-driving taxis for the first time
Londoners can now book a self-driving taxi through Uber for the first time, although the new service will still have a licensed human driver behind the wheel.
Londoners can now hail a self-driving taxi for the first time, after Wayve's autonomous vehicles became available through the Uber app on Thursday (03.09.26).
The launch marks a major step towards fully driverless taxis in the UK capital, although passengers should not expect to see a completely empty driver's seat just yet.
Only 15 vehicles have so far been licensed, compared with more than 100,000 private hire vehicles operating across London.
Around 100,000 Uber customers have reportedly registered their interest in taking an autonomous ride.
The modified Ford Mustang vehicles use Wayve's AI driving technology, but a licensed human safety driver will remain in the front seat and can take control if necessary.
Transport for London licensed the cars as private hire vehicles last month.
Separate approval is required before vehicles can operate without a safety driver, through a government process overseen by the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency.
That approval is now considered unlikely to arrive this year.
Thursday's launch nevertheless gives Uber and Wayve an early lead in London's increasingly competitive robotaxi race. Google-owned Waymo and Chinese technology company Baidu are also testing autonomous vehicles in the city.
Alex Kendall, Wayve's chief executive and co-founder, said the company was proud to introduce its AI Driver technology in its "home city and one of the most complex driving environments in the world".
The technology is "still maturing", he said, but fully driverless services will eventually arrive.
Kendall said: "I don't want to put a timeline on it, but we're pushing as fast as we can."
Wayve plans to move towards mass-produced Nissan Leaf vehicles fitted with its technology, but must first validate their safety performance and secure regulatory approval.
Unlike Waymo, which relies heavily on detailed mapping, Wayve uses an AI learning model to navigate roads.
The vehicles can be booked and unlocked through Uber.
Passengers will be told that the safety driver will not speak during the journey, although they can request that the driver take control.
Sarfraz Maredia, Uber's head of autonomous mobility, said the technology should eventually make journeys "safer and cheaper", although autonomous vehicles currently cost more to operate than conventional rides.
Uber said it expects human drivers and autonomous vehicles to operate alongside one another for years.
Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander called the launch "a major milestone for the future of transport in London", while the GMB union warned that the rollout could cause significant social and economic disruption if introduced too quickly.
