Co-CEO Tekedra Mawakana told Bloomberg News that the company will officially separate from Uber in the Austin and Atlanta markets starting from January 2028.

This robot taxi company will switch to providing ride-hailing services directly through its own smartphone app, just like in other cities. The statement from Mawakana confirms a report by the Financial Times earlier this year: Waymo has been seeking to exit the cooperation agreement with Uber, which was originally scheduled to expire in May 2028.

Mawakana told Bloomberg that Waymo initially collaborated with Uber because this ride-hailing giant could offer scale advantages. However, she said that the passenger experience is "a bit of a gamble," especially because passengers can never be sure whether they are getting a robot-driven taxi or a car driven by a human.

"For us, it's very important to establish this kind of relationship with passengers. We have already received feedback from passengers in these markets," said Mawakana.

Uber told Bloomberg that Uber has numerous partnerships with robot taxis and other autonomous vehicles. Uber stated that not including a direct reservation option for robot taxis in its ride-hailing app is Waymo's own decision.