Waymo announced on Friday that its self-driving vehicles will first be manually driven across Toronto to create high-definition maps of the city's street networks. The company will then test its autonomous vehicles on public roads with a human safety operator on board, and will only pull those operators from the driver's seat once testing is complete. After that, it will invite the public to ride in its robotaxis.
The move is part of an aggressive push into new markets that has gathered pace over the past two years. Two years ago, Waymo was operating commercial robotaxi services in only three U.S. cities and its vehicles had not yet driven on freeways. Expansion began in March 2025 with a deployment in Austin, followed by Atlanta, and today the company operates robotaxi services in 15 U.S. cities while testing in London and Tokyo.
Toronto will be the northernmost and possibly most wintry city Waymo has attempted, conditions that will test both its autonomous driving technology and its operational capabilities. Co-CEO Tekedra Mawakana described the Canadian expansion as an important milestone in the company's global journey.
As part of its accelerated expansion strategy, Waymo has begun partnering with third-party companies to manage its fleet in each city. In Toronto, it has partnered with Element Fleet Management, and expects the operation to support hundreds of jobs in fleet maintenance, validation driving, customer service and operations.