Alphabet's autonomous driving company Waymo plans to launch a fully autonomous ride-hailing service in Toronto, Canada, by 2028. The move would expand its Waymo One service internationally; it currently operates in select U.S. cities. Waymo has a binding framework agreement in place and will soon begin manual mapping and validation drives in Toronto.
The initiative is expected to create hundreds of fleet maintenance and customer service jobs through a partnership with Element Fleet Management. The expansion is a step in Alphabet's strategy to scale its Other Bets segment and establish a commercial foothold for autonomous driving technology in markets outside the United States.