The key facts

  • The split was confirmed by Waymo co-CEO Tekedra Mawakana in a comment to Bloomberg
  • The agreement with Uber ran until May 2028; the split will happen earlier — in January 2028
  • Uber claims that the initiative to end the integration came from Waymo

Waymo is parting ways with Uber ahead of schedule

Waymo will officially end its partnership with Uber in the Austin and Atlanta markets starting in January 2028. Bloomberg News was told this by the company's co-CEO Tekedra Mawakana; the report was published on Wednesday, November 4, 2026. After the split, Waymo robotaxis will be available only through the company's own app — the same way it operates in other cities.

Why the partnership is ending

Mawakana explained that Waymo originally partnered with Uber for the scale that the ride-hailing service provided. However, according to her, the passenger experience turned out to be 'a bit of a lottery': a person could not know in advance whether a robotaxi or a car with a driver would arrive. 'It's important for us to have a relationship with the rider. We received that kind of feedback from users in these markets,' Bloomberg quoted her as saying.

Context and Uber's position

Mawakana's comment confirms earlier Financial Times reports that Waymo had been seeking to exit its deal with Uber, which was set to expire in May 2028. Thus, the split will happen roughly four months before the contract's end. Uber, which, according to TechCrunch, has many partners among robotaxi developers and other autonomous vehicle makers, told Bloomberg that the idea of not adding the ability to directly order Waymo robotaxis in its app came from Waymo itself.