Waymo, originating as a self-driving project within Google and now an independent unit of Alphabet, is initiating the public release of its driverless ride-hailing capabilities.

The company announced that, beginning today, individuals participating in the Waymo One program can invite family members and friends to join them on fully autonomous rides within the Phoenix metropolitan area. Current Waymo One subscribers will be the first to experience these driverless journeys—defined as trips completed without a human driver. However, the company stated that within the coming weeks, access to the service will be extended directly to new users through its application, available for download on both Google Play and the App Store.

Waymo asserts that all of its rides will be entirely driverless, categorized as its “rider only” operational mode. It’s important to clarify the meaning of this 100% claim. The public should not anticipate a sudden, widespread deployment of hundreds of Waymo-branded Chrysler Pacifica minivans—operating without a human driver—across the entire 600-plus square mile region surrounding Phoenix.

Waymo maintains a fleet of approximately 600 vehicles, with between 300 and 400 of those based in the Phoenix area. While Waymo has not disclosed the precise number of vehicles dedicated to driverless rides, CEO John Krafcik explained to TechCrunch in a recent discussion that the Phoenix area will feature a variety of operational modes. Some vehicles will operate in “rider only” mode, while others will continue to have trained safety operators present. A portion of the fleet will also be utilized for ongoing testing procedures.

“We are fully prepared from every perspective,” Krafcik conveyed to TechCrunch. “Our confidence in our readiness is demonstrated by the feedback from our initial group of riders, who have assisted us in refining the service—not from a safety perspective, as we have maintained confidence in safety for some time, but rather in terms of the overall product experience.” He further noted that these early users helped the company assess whether the service was “providing satisfaction and enjoyment.”

Later this year, Waymo plans to reinstate rides with a trained vehicle operator to increase capacity and extend service to a broader geographical area. Krafcik indicated that the company is currently installing in-vehicle barriers between the front and rear passenger compartments to enhance hygiene and safety.

Waymo’s current operational area encompasses approximately 100 square miles. The driverless, or “rider only,” service area available to Waymo One members will initially cover around 50 square miles, according to Krafcik.

Despite these qualifications, this development represents a significant milestone—one of many the company has reached over the past decade. The last five years have been particularly productive, beginning with Steve Mahan, a legally blind individual, taking the “first” driverless ride in the company’s Firefly prototype on the streets of Austin in 2015. In 2017, over a dozen journalists experienced driverless rides on a closed course at Waymo’s testing facility in Castle. Subsequently, last November, TechCrunch participated in one of the first driverless rides in a Waymo Pacifica minivan on public roads in a Phoenix suburb.

The company concurrently expanded its commercial product while continuing these demonstrations and tests. In 2017, Waymo initiated its early rider program, allowing vetted members of the public—who had signed non-disclosure agreements—to request its self-driving cars in the Phoenix area. All of these autonomous vehicles had human safety operators behind the wheel.

Waymo subsequently launched Waymo One, a self-driving ride-hailing service intended for public use without requiring non-disclosure agreements. However, these rides also initially included human safety operators prepared to take control if necessary. Waymo gradually transitioned members of its early rider program into the more accessible Waymo One service. It also began experimenting with ride pricing and broadened its service area—or geofenced operational zone. Currently, the company charges for rides across all of its programs (early rider and Waymo One) in the Phoenix area. The Waymo One service (with human safety operators) operates within approximately 100 square miles of Phoenix suburbs like Chandler.

The initial indications that Waymo was prepared to operate vehicles without human safety operators emerged last fall when members of its early rider program received notification that driverless rides would soon be available.

And they became available, though initially limited and offered free of charge. Importantly, these rides remained within the early rider program, which maintained the protection of non-disclosure agreements. Waymo gradually increased the scale of the service until approximately 5 to 10% of its total rides in 2020 were fully driverless for its exclusive group of early riders under NDA. The service was then temporarily suspended due to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. The company has continued testing with its safety drivers in both Arizona and California, which has raised concerns among those workers regarding the potential for contracting COVID-19 and exposure to air quality issues caused by wildfires in California.

Waymo has implemented new safety measures in response to COVID-19, including requiring passengers to wear masks, providing hand sanitizer in all vehicles, and performing what Krafcik described as a cabin flush—essentially a four to five-fold increase in air volume circulated through the vehicle—after each ride.

Krafcik also stated that Waymo will soon integrate the all-electric Jaguar I-Pace into its fleet, initially testing them on public roads before adding them to the early rider program.

Updated: The company now charges for all rides in Phoenix.