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Waymo opens Zeekr-built Ojai robotaxi to all riders in its U.S. markets
Confirmed
That’s a 42% cut in sensor count from the fifth-generation system, and Waymo has said the hardware now runs under $20,000 per vehicle — a key lever for scaling the fleet profitably. Waymo has driven that stack under $20,000 and found a purpose-built body that beats anything it could source domestically. By early August, it said more than 300 were already carrying early-access passengers. The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) approved the Ojai for paid driverless passenger service and simultaneously cleared a substantial geographical expansion of Waymo’s commercial operations across parts of 18 California counties. The rollout marks a major step up from June, when Newmobility.news first reported on the Ojai and its initial free rides in San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Phoenix.
Waymo is now letting all riders in San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Phoenix hail its next-generation Ojai robotaxi — a vehicle built in China by Zeekr. That makes the Ojai one of the only ways for an American to ride in a Chinese-made EV, a car they still can’t legally buy for themselves. Waymo announced today that the Ojai, which had been limited to free early-access rides since it started offering trips in the new robotaxi on May 28 , is now open to the general public across all three markets as the Alphabet unit begins commercial operations with the platform. Riders may be matched with an Ojai when one is available nearby. Waymo says it will eventually let passengers choose between the Oja
newmobility.news Joris Van Roy August 21, 2026 Waymo’s Ojai is now available to regular paying customers in San Francisco, Los Angeles and Phoenix. The Zeekr-built robotaxi was developed partly in Gothenburg, Sweden /Waymo If you hail a Waymo in San Francisco today, there is a growing chance that a Chinese-built, Swedish-designed Zeekr will turn up instead of the familiar Jaguar I-Pace. Waymo has now opened its new Ojai robotaxi to regular paying customers after California regulators cleared the vehicle for commercial driverless rides. The rollout marks a major step up from June, when Newmobility.news first reported on the Ojai and its initial free rides in San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Ph
What's confirmed
- That’s a 42% cut in sensor count from the fifth-generation system, and Waymo has said the hardware now runs under $20,000 per vehicle — a key lever for scaling the fleet profitably.
What's still developing
- Further court action and how much of the order can take effect remain open.