Waymo partners with Avis to manage autonomous taxi service in Dallas

Waymo, the Alphabet-owned autonomous vehicle company, is launching a robotaxi service in Dallas next year, expanding its footprint beyond Los Angeles and San Francisco. The company has formed a partnership with Avis Budget Group, which will oversee the fleet of all-electric autonomous Jaguar I-Pace vehicles. Avis’s role includes managing depot operations, such as vehicle charging and maintenance. This collaboration marks Avis as the first rental car company to support Waymo’s robotaxi fleet, with plans for further city expansions in the future. Waymo has previously partnered with other companies, including Uber and Moove, in different cities. The partnership with Avis is expected to accelerate the deployment of Waymo’s autonomous vehicles in new markets efficiently and cost-effectively. The Dallas launch follows earlier testing by Waymo, where they mapped the city and conducted trials with human safety operators. Over time, the fleet is expected to scale to hundreds of vehicles, with further plans to expand to cities like Washington D.C. and Miami. Avis’s CEO, Brian Choi, sees this partnership as a significant step for Avis in transitioning from a rental company to a provider of fleet management and infrastructure services for the mobility sector.