The future of getting from A to B without touching the steering wheel is finally here. And it’s a fight between two of Silicon Valley’s biggest names. On one side: Waymo, Alphabet’s self-driving division that has spent over a decade perfecting robotaxis and just crossed 100 million driverless miles on public roads. On the other: Tesla, with Elon Musk promising a future where your car earns money for you while you sleep.
Waymo Expands While Tesla Launches Big (and a Little Vulgar)
In Austin, Texas, the battleground is clear. Tesla finally launched its long-delayed robotaxi service in late June, giving select influencers and shareholders access to its camera-only, Full Self-Driving (FSD)-powered Model Ys. At first, Tesla’s service area was tiny. Then it expanded, marking the moment with a map shaped like, well, a crude joke.
Waymo, meanwhile, doubled its coverage in Austin from 37 square miles to 90 square miles, spanning most of the city and linking up with Uber for easy hailing. That’s more than double Tesla’s 42-square-mile footprint, and Waymo’s cars are available to the general public, not just hand-picked Tesla fans.
Scale and Experience: Waymo’s Trump Card
Waymo has been playing the long game. It already runs robotaxi services in Phoenix, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Austin, books more than 250,000 paid rides per week, and has partnerships to bring autonomous trips to Washington, D.C., Atlanta, Miami in 2026, and even Tokyo. It just started testing its cars in New York and Philadelphia. Next stop: 10 more cities by year’s end.
Tesla, by contrast, is scaling from scratch. Its FSD system remains classified as Level 2—driver supervision required—though its robotaxi fleet runs driverless in limited geofenced areas. The difference in scale is stark: Waymo has roughly 1,500 autonomous vehicles today and plans to add 2,000 more next year, while Tesla’s Austin fleet numbers in the low hundreds.
North to South, we're covering more ground in Austin starting today. Safe and fully autonomous Waymo rides, only on @Uber. See you on the road, ATX. pic.twitter.com/h4UdHzBZ4A — Waymo (@Waymo) July 17, 2025
Tech Philosophies Collide
Waymo relies on lidar sensors, high-definition maps, and a cautious safety-first approach that critics call slow but steady. Tesla bets on cameras and neural networks, arguing that cheaper hardware and a massive data advantage from millions of customer vehicles will allow it to scale faster and cheaper once it’s ready.
That difference shows up in the user experience: Waymo offers hands-off rides now. Tesla’s long-term vision is that your personal car will moonlight as a taxi while you sleep, a future Musk says is inevitable. The question is when, and whether regulators, insurance companies, and passengers will buy in.
What It Means for You
Faster access to driverless rides: If you live in or near Waymo’s service areas, robotaxis are already a reality for daily commutes or late-night trips.
Tesla owners still have to wait: Musk’s promise that your personal Tesla could make you money while you sleep is still aspirational, at least outside Austin.
Tesla owners still have to wait: Musk’s promise that your personal Tesla could make you money while you sleep is still aspirational, at least outside Austin. Pricing and availability: Waymo’s rides are already integrated into Uber in some cities, meaning you can hail one like any regular ride. Tesla’s pricing and access remain experimental.
Safety perceptions: Waymo’s cautious approach and lidar-heavy design appeal to regulators and cautious riders. Tesla’s camera-only approach is more controversial and still being vetted at scale.
The Verdict (For Now)
On paper, Tesla has the potential to catch up thanks to its massive data engine and vertically integrated fleet. But today, Waymo is winning, by a lot. Its service areas are larger, its rides are fully driverless and open to the public, and it’s rapidly expanding to new cities. Tesla, by comparison, is still in pilot mode, with limited access and plenty of kinks to work out.