Uber and Wayve Get First London Robotaxi Licences

The decision is part of a global race to bring self-driving taxis to London. The city could become one of the first places where American and Chinese technology companies compete on the same roads. Uber and Wayve want to stay ahead of Waymo, owned by Google, and Apollo Go, a similar service from the Chinese company Baidu. Wayve has tested its cars on London's streets since 2018, always with safety drivers. Uber stopped developing its own self-driving technology in 2020 and now works with partners instead. TfL said experts had checked Wayve's changes to the cars and confirmed they met the required safety standards.

Reactions are mixed. Wayve called the licences an important step towards safer and quieter streets, and Uber described the moment as a key milestone. However, the GMB union, which represents thousands of private hire drivers, called the decision worrying and asked for support for drivers who may lose their jobs. TfL says safety is its top priority and wants to end all serious road injuries by 2041. To remove human drivers completely, the companies will need approval from another government agency. Uber plans to invest more than $10 billion in self-driving vehicles.