Alphabet’s self-driving unit Waymo is making its most aggressive expansion move yet, announcing plans to grow its robotaxi fleet from 4,000 vehicles today to 8,000 by the end of 2026 — and an ambitious 20,000 by the end of 2027. The news, first reported by Semafor and confirmed by Reuters on October 19, 2026, signals that the autonomous vehicle race is entering a new gear.
The massive scale-up is being bankrolled by a landmark $5 billion private debt deal — Waymo’s very first — secured on October 8, 2026. The loan was arranged by Goldman Sachs and backed by a who’s-who of private credit, including PIMCO, Blackstone, and Sixth Street Partners. The company says funds will be used to “accelerate the continued expansion of our fully autonomous ride-hailing service across the United States and internationally.”
New fleet vehicles include the Geely-owned Zeekr Ojai people movers and thousands of Hyundai Ioniq 5 robotaxis already on order. Waymo currently operates in 15 U.S. cities, running over 500,000 paid rides per week, and has announced international expansion plans for London, Tokyo, Singapore, and Canada. The push comes as an independent Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) study found Waymo vehicles involved in 81% fewer injury crashes than human drivers — adding safety data to its commercial momentum.
Source: Semafor – Waymo Plans to Quintuple Its Fleet