Waymo Finally Takes the Driver Out of Its Self-Driving Cars

Eight years after launching its self-driving "moonshot," Waymo, aka Google's driverless car company, is having its Neil Armstrong moment. The company is now running its autonomous minivans around Phoenix, Arizona, with no human inside to grab the wheel if things go bad, CEO John Krafcik announced Tuesday. And in just a few months, it will invite passengers to climb aboard the world's first driverless ride-hailing service. This launch brings up a host of unanswered questions about the details and practical elements of such a service, but what's already clear is Waymo is taking one of the final steps on the long road toward taking the human driver out of the picture, and finally cashing in on the profits and safety benefits that come with the transition to robot chauffeurs. "Fully self-driving cars are here," Waymo CEO John Krafcik said at Web Summit in Lisbon this afternoon, where he announced the move.