Andrew J. Hawkins

Customers who book a robotaxi to select LA transit stations can get a $3 credit that can be applied to future Waymo rides. The promotion will run February 4-April 1, and is specifically geared toward helping LA residents get to LAX via bus. (Waymo still isn’t making airport runs in LA, nor does it operate on the freeways — yet.) Waymo says the promotion will help it learn how customers use (or don’t use) its self-driving cars as first- and last-mile options for public transportation. But some experts worry that autonomous vehicles will siphon riders from transit, which could lead to service cuts.

The Swedish automaker is already working with Aurora on its autonomous big rigs, and now its adding Waabi to its list of partners. Raquel Urtasun, the former chief scientist at Uber’s Advanced Technologies Group, founded Waabi in 2021 to be a more “AI-centric approach” to autonomous vehicles.

Waymo just flipped the switch from supervised to unsupervised in Atlanta, where it aims to eventually launch a commercial robotaxi service later this year through an exclusive partnership with Uber. But for now, the Alphabet-owned company’s vehicles will only be available to employees. Waymo is currently operating in San Francisco, Phoenix, and LA, and is still operating under a waitlist in Austin. Also on deck: Miami.