Investing.com-- Alphabet Inc’s (NASDAQ: GOOGL ) autonomous driving unit, Waymo, has received approval from the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) to extend its driverless ride-hailing services to more parts of the San Francisco Bay Area, including San Jose.
"While this won’t change our operations in the near-term, we’re looking forward to bringing the benefits of Waymo One to more of the Bay Area in the future," the company posted on social media platform X on Tuesday.
Currently, Waymo operates over 1,500 autonomous vehicles across cities including San Francisco, Los Angeles, Phoenix, and Austin, conducting more than 250,000 rides weekly.
This approval comes as competition intensifies in the autonomous vehicle sector, with Tesla Inc (NASDAQ: TSLA ) planning to launch its own robotaxi service in Austin next month and aiming to expand to California later this year.