Robotaxis Will Hit London's Notoriously Unruly Roads This Year. Are They Ready for Chaos? - CNET

Our gifting experts are obsessively searching for holiday gifts that are unique, thoughtful and suitable for any budget. Our expert, award-winning staff selects the products we cover and rigorously researches and tests our top picks. If you buy through our links, we may earn a commission. Waymo and Wayve (in partnership with Uber) are gearing up to launch in the British capital by the end of 2026. At SXSW London, the companies showed how the prep is going. Londoners have been spotting Waymos sailing around the city for the past few months. To be a pedestrian in London is to have the power. Tube strikes? Bus delays? No fear — you can probably walk there faster anyway. And traffic? Make it stop for you. There are no jaywalking laws here. It’s against this backdrop of people stepping out into the road whenever they damn well please that Waymo plans to launch its fully autonomous robotaxis this year. “We’re treating London with the appropriate amount of humility and respect,” Saswat Panigrahi, Waymo’s chief product officer, told the audience at SXSW London. On a couple of occasions throughout the tech festival, I caught a glimpse of one of the company’s Jaguar I-Pace vehicles rolling s