Here's how quickly people started taking robotaxis as Waymo expanded in California
Since its debut to the California public in 2022, Waymo has seen a rapid increase in ridership, showing how humans are increasingly entrusting their lives to robot drivers.
Here are a few numbers that show it.
In March 2022, Waymo provided more than 3,700 rides, according to data published by the California Public Utilities Commission. At the time, Waymo was limited to staff or pre-approved riders in San Francisco. The company would later open a waitlist, allowing limited members of the public to sign up for rides.
The Alphabet company expanded to Los Angeles in November 2024 and other parts of the San Francisco Bay Area in March 2025, increasing the number of rides to 708,180 in the state.
Another way to look at it: When Waymo began offering paid rides in August 2023, the number of rides provided in California was just 12,617.
In less than two years, the number of riders increased by more than 5,500%. In total, Waymo provided more than 5 million rides in three years.
Naturally, the number of traffic incidents also increased.
Between March and May 2022, Waymo reported 17 collisions, the CPUC data showed.
Between January and March 2025, the number of collisions increased to 132.
However, an analysis by Business Insider showed that the rate of collisions decreased significantly when incidents per 100,000 rides were considered.
Between March and May 2022, the rate of collisions was about 147 collisions per 100,000 rides.
Between January and March 2025, when Waymo provided more than 1.8 million rides, the rate decreased to about 7 collisions per 100,000 rides — about a 95% decrease from 2022.
The CPUC data only shows a part of Waymo's overall expansion.
Waymo said that it had provided more than 5 million rides across all operating cities by the end of 2024.
In May, the company said it had surpassed 10 million rides across its operating cities in Phoenix, San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Austin.
That means Waymo just about doubled its ridership in less than half a year.
In a recent blog post, the company said it operates 1,500 robotaxis and plans to add 2,000 more by 2026.
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