Waymo expands Robotaxi service to Nashville in partnership with Lyft

Waymo, the autonomous vehicle company owned by Alphabet, has announced its expansion into Nashville, Tennessee, through a new partnership with ride-hailing giant Lyft. This strategic move marks Waymo's latest step in bringing its driverless robotaxi service to major U.S. cities and represents a significant collaboration with a key competitor to its existing partner, Uber.

A new partnership for a new city

The partnership will bring Waymo's fully autonomous, all-electric Jaguar I-Pace vehicles to Nashville's streets, with the service expected to become publicly available to riders in 2026. This marks a departure from Waymo's recent strategy of exclusively partnering with Uber for new city launches in Austin and Atlanta.

The collaboration leverages Lyft's extensive fleet management capabilities, with its subsidiary Flexdrive handling vehicle maintenance, charging infrastructure, and other depot operations for the Nashville fleet.

"We're delighted to partner with Lyft and launch in Nashville next year, as we continue to scale our Waymo ride-hailing service to more people in more places," said Waymo co-CEO Tekedra Mawakana. Lyft CEO David Risher echoed this sentiment, stating the partnership "brings together best-in-class autonomous vehicles with best-in-class customer experience."

How the service will roll out

Waymo plans to begin testing its fleet on Nashville streets in the coming months, a crucial step to map the city and ensure the safety of its technology before a public launch. Once the service is live, users will initially be able to book rides through the Waymo app.

A dynamic marketplace integration will be implemented later in 2026, allowing Waymo vehicles to also be matched with ride requests on the Lyft network. This hybrid approach will allow Waymo to serve both platforms, maximizing fleet utilization and providing access to its autonomous vehicles for a wider user base.

The growing robotaxi industry

Nashville will be Waymo’s fifth U.S. city to offer a fully autonomous service, adding to its operations in San Francisco, Phoenix, Los Angeles, and Austin. The expansion demonstrates Waymo’s aggressive push to scale its business and compete in the growing robotaxi market. The partnership with Lyft also highlights a strategic shift for Waymo, as it seeks to diversify its ride-hailing partners and avoid a sole reliance on Uber.

For Lyft, the deal is a significant win, giving it access to Waymo's advanced technology and helping it compete more effectively with Uber in the autonomous vehicle space. The news was well-received by investors, with Lyft's shares reportedly surging 10% following the announcement.