Waymo prepares robotaxis in Madrid, first riders targeted for 2027

In the coming days, electric Jaguar I-PACE cars from Waymo will start appearing on the streets of the Madrid region. The first stage is manual driving: people behind the wheel, mapping the roads before any automated step. Waymo says it is laying the groundwork for its fully autonomous ride-hailing service there, the first in Spain, and aims to welcome its first riders in 2027.

Waymo already runs robotaxis, cars that take passengers on demand without a driver, in several cities. The company says it has completed more than 20 million trips and serves hundreds of thousands of commercial rides every week. Madrid is the first step into a new country. The next step is the validation phase: trained autonomous specialists, seated at the wheel, check that the Waymo Driver, the company's self-driving system, adapts to the region's traffic patterns and road conditions. The announcement gives no date for the end of that phase.

The safety argument is the centre of Waymo's pitch. Over 400 million fully autonomous kilometres, the company reports 95% fewer crashes involving serious injury or worse than human drivers in the cities where it operates, which it presents as 20 times fewer. These are Waymo's own figures. The Spanish Road Safety Foundation (FESVIAL) and the Spanish Association for the Study of Spinal Cord Injury (AESLEME) both back the project publicly. AESLEME's director, Mar Cogollos, argues that human error lies behind more than 90% of road accidents, citing distraction, fatigue, alcohol, drugs and speeding.

Waymo says it is working with national, regional and local authorities, briefing emergency services on its technology, and investing in local operations. It also states that its service will align with Spanish national and regional regulatory frameworks, which will govern how and when it can carry paying riders.

For Madrid residents, the concrete change is a date and a direction. A fully autonomous taxi option could exist from 2027, if validation goes to plan. Until then, the streets will see Waymo's cars being driven by people. The announcement gives no number of vehicles, no fares and no service area, so the scale of the service in 2027 remains open.