Uber opens London waitlist for Wayve robotaxis, betting on regulators “in the coming months”

Uber has opened a new in-app interest list for London riders looking for a chance to be matched with the city’s first robotaxis powered by Wayve’s AI driving system, the company said in an announcement reported Monday. The service is expected to arrive in the “coming months,” but Uber framed the timeline as conditional on regulators giving the final go-ahead.

According to the reporting, Uber’s pilot plan is to make the autonomous rides work like standard UberX, Uber Electric, and Uber Comfort services, except the vehicle will be driven by AI. Riders who are matched with an autonomous car will be able to accept the trip or switch to a conventional human-driven option, and the robotaxi ride will not carry additional charges versus the normal service choice.

The vehicles for the London launch effort are described as Ford Mustang Mach-E electric cars branded as “Uber x Wayve.” Reuters’ account also said the cars are equipped with surround cameras and radar, and that Wayve’s technology has been tested on London roads since 2018, a key detail for a city known for dense traffic and complicated street design.

Uber and Wayve said the initial service would include a trained operator positioned in the vehicle to monitor the system, even though riders could expect to be taken from pickup to drop-off without human intervention during normal operation. Full “driverless” operations were described as a future phase rather than something launching immediately.

For riders trying to get on the list, TechCrunch reported that Uber users can increase their odds by adjusting account settings to select autonomous-vehicle rider preferences, then indicating willingness to be matched with an autonomous ride. TechCrunch also said Uber designed the rider experience inside the car, including interactive touchscreens that support 64 languages.

The London effort sits inside a broader push by the UK government to stand up rules for automated passenger services. In May, the Department for Transport and the Centre for Connected and Autonomous Vehicles opened applications for a self-driving vehicles pilot scheme, describing taxi, bus, and private-hire style services that could be booked later this year while meeting strict safety requirements and receiving local consent from authorities such as Transport for London.

For Uber, the London waitlist is another step in its strategy to keep autonomous mobility within its platform rather than leaving it to standalone robotaxi networks. The company has been positioning robotaxis as a complementary service to its core ride-hailing business, while navigating regulatory scrutiny and a competitive landscape that includes Waymo, which is also testing in London.

Still, important details remain unconfirmed in the public messaging so far. Uber and Wayve have not provided an exact launch date, the geographic service area, the expected number of vehicles, or the operational boundaries for when the robotaxis can and cannot be dispatched. The availability of fully driverless service is also deferred to a future stage, leaving the near-term experience dependent on how regulators and local authorities approve the deployment.