Waymo plans to launch a commercial robotaxi service in Singapore in 2028, marking the Alphabet-owned company's first entry into Southeast Asia1,2,4,5.
Fully electric Jaguar I-Pace vehicles are due to arrive in Singapore in the coming months. From 2027, trained autonomous specialists will manually drive the vehicles to help Waymo adapt its technology to Singapore's road layouts, monsoon conditions, and other local features. The service is expected to open to the public through the Waymo app in 2028.
Regulatory path
Waymo will need approval from Singapore's Land Transport Authority (LTA) before it can begin accepting passengers6. Singapore requires all autonomous vehicles to undergo a safety assessment conducted at the Centre of Excellence for Testing and Research (CETRAN) before they can be deployed on public roads. Singapore has previously green-lit autonomous freight delivery, road-sweepers, and self-driving buses for airport workers. Motional conducted a robotaxi pilot in Singapore in 2016.
Waymo established a corporate entity in Singapore earlier this year and participates in the country's Steering Committee on Autonomous Vehicles.
Singapore's transport minister Jeffrey Siow said Waymo "brings world-class technology and operational expertise to Singapore" and would move the country toward "creating new transport options for Singaporeans"3. Siow noted Singapore has over 70,000 taxi and private-hire car drivers but only around 20 autonomous vehicles currently operating on its roads.
"Singapore has built one of the safest, most efficient and most forward-thinking transportation ecosystems in the world," said Tekedra Mawakana, Waymo's co-CEO, in a September 18 press release. "As we begin our journey here, we are committed to listening to the community, creating high-skilled local operational jobs and working…to complement Singapore's world class public transit network".
Rapid international expansion
Singapore is the latest in a string of international markets Waymo has targeted. The company announced plans to enter Japan just days before the Singapore announcement. Waymo, Nihon Kotsu, and Go formally agreed to prepare for a fully unmanned autonomous ride-hailing service in Tokyo in 2027[2]. Waymo has also said it plans to launch a robotaxi service in London by the end of 2026 and in Munich, Germany, in late 2027, which would be its first expansion in the European Union.
Domestically, Waymo has announced several new markets this year, including Nashville, Denver, San Diego, and Las Vegas. The company has around 4,000 vehicles operating in about 15 U.S. cities. Waymo began offering paid autonomous rides in Las Vegas on September 14[1]. Regulatory hurdles and political opposition have kept Waymo out of New York City, Chicago, and Washington, DC.
Singapore's ride-hailing market is currently dominated by Grab. ANALYSIS The Singapore deployment follows a pattern in Waymo's international strategy: entering markets with established regulatory frameworks for autonomous vehicles rather than pioneering regulation from scratch.