Waymo Invites San Francisco Residents to Test Self-Driving Rides
Alphabet-owned Waymo launches its "Trusted Tester" program in San Francisco, allowing locals to ride in its autonomous Jaguar I-PACE vehicles and provide feedback. The move marks a step toward expansion as the company looks beyond its initial Phoenix market.
Alphabet-owned Waymo invites San Francisco residents to participate in a new "Trusted Tester" program through the Waymo One app. Accepted participants get to hail fully electric Jaguar I-PACE vehicles and share direct feedback about their rider experience. The company relies on this input to refine its app, pickup and drop-off processes, and overall service quality.
Testers must sign non-disclosure agreements to join the program, and human safety drivers remain behind the wheel during these rides as a backup. This testing phase takes place in San Francisco, which Waymo hopes to establish as its second official market. The company currently operates a full self-driving taxi service only in the Phoenix metropolitan area.
This expansion effort happens amid reported internal frustration over the slow pace of rolling out to new cities. Several staff members, including the former CEO, depart the company in recent months. Waymo does not reveal exactly how many testers it will accept into the San Francisco program or how long the testing phase will last.