Uber, Wayve To Trial Robotaxis In London In 2026

The capital of the United Kingdom is to see a trial of autonomous robotaxis, following similar robotaxi operations in certain US cities.

UK-based autonomous mobility firm Wayve, which is backed by the likes of SoftBank, Nvidia and Microsoft, teamed up with Uber to announce “a first-ever plan to develop and launch public-road trials of Level 4 (L4) fully autonomous vehicles in London.”

Both firms said this announcement “marks the UK as the largest market where Uber has announced an intention to pilot autonomous vehicles. These trials will combine Wayve’s industry-leading Embodied AI platform with Uber’s global mobility network, marking a significant step forward in bringing autonomous vehicles to the streets of Europe at scale.”

London Robotaxis

They announced this “opportunity has been enabled by the UK Secretary of State for Transport’s announcement today of an accelerated framework for self-driving commercial pilots, a crucial step towards making the UK a world leader in this technology.”

Wayve and Uber said they will collaborate with the UK Government and Transport for London on the permitting and regulatory approval process prior to launch.

London and other UK cities represent complex driving environments, with significantly different road layouts and traffic laws compared to locations in the US, where a majority of global L4 testing has until now been conducted.

The lessons learnt from the UK will therefore be a major step forward in the development of L4 technology for deployment in cities around the world.

“This is a defining moment for UK autonomy,” said Alex Kendall, CEO and Co-founder of Wayve. “With Uber and a global OEM partner, we’re preparing to put our AI Driver technology into real service on the streets of London, delivering on our AV2.0 vision for scalable autonomy. Our Embodied AI learns to drive anywhere, in any vehicle, and this trial brings us closer to bringing safe and intelligent driving to everyday rides across the UK and beyond.”

“We’re excited to take the next step in our journey with Wayve, bringing autonomous mobility to one of the world’s busiest and most complex urban environments,” added Andrew Macdonald, President and Chief Operating Officer of Uber.

“Wayve’s globally scalable AV2.0 approach makes them an ideal partner to bring Uber’s autonomous vision to reality in new cities around the world,” said Macdonald. “Our vision is to make autonomy a safe and reliable option for riders everywhere, and this trial in London brings that future closer to reality.”

“Today’s agreement, between two leading names at the forefront of the sector, is a fantastic vote of confidence in this new technology,” said Heidi Alexander, Secretary of State for Transport. “By fast tracking pilots of self-driving vehicles to spring 2026, we are excited to see safety-first tests that will drive growth, create 38,000 jobs and add £42bn to our economy.”

AI model

According to the announcement, Wayve’s AI-first approach, known as AV2.0, moves beyond the constraints of traditional AV systems that rely on HD maps, hand-coded rules, or geofenced domains.

Instead, Wayve’s end-to-end Embodied AI learns apparently from experience like a human driver, enabling it to adapt to new roads, vehicles, and cities with unprecedented efficiency.

This capability was recently demonstrated in Wayve’s Global Roadshow, where a single AI Driver navigated 90 cities in 90 days across Europe, North America, and Japan – handling dense urban streets, rural tracks, and complex highway conditions with minimal prior exposure.

“We drove through Tokyo, Milan, and Montana – all with the same AI model,” said Alex Kendall, CEO and co-founder of Wayve. “That’s the power of AV2.0. It’s what gives us the confidence to launch a driverless ride-hailing service with Uber, starting in London and expanding to other cities around the world.”

Uber in the United States has partnered with Alphabet’s Waymo to offer robotaxi services in a number of US cities, including Austin, Texas.