Waymo sets sights on Munich as it expands robotaxi push across Europe**

Waymo, an Alphabet company, will be testing its autonomous vehicles in Munich within the next few weeks and is hoping to begin providing a robotaxi service to the public by the end of 2027, according to CNBC.

A small fleet of all-electric Jaguar I-PACE vehicles will begin driving around Munich with trained safety drivers behind the wheel. The vehicles will travel into regions such as Maxvorstadt, Au-Haidhausen, and Ludwigsvorstadt-Isarvorstadt as Waymo develops a map of the local streets and evaluates how well its driverless car technology works in the city environment.

Waymo spokesperson Chris Pappas described Munich as “one of the world’s leading mobility hubs,” according to Zag Daily, while referring to its move into the German market as the beginning of a long relationship.

In the meantime, the company has not said how many vehicles it will deploy.

Waymo has been quietly laying the groundwork across Europe

Munich is the visible part of a corporate build-out that has run for three months without public comment. Waymo Germany GmbH was incorporated on May 13 and entered Munich’s commercial register on June 15, at Google’s Munich office.

The Waymo Iberia SL was incorporated by means of notarial deed in Madrid on June 9, its very name implying an interest in both Portugal and Spain. Waymo Netherlands B.V. was incorporated on June 12 in Amsterdam, having the same directors as its German counterpart, with an objective relating to transport logistics, computing facilities, and sale of automobiles.

On June 23, the French subsidiary, Waymo France EURL, was founded in Paris, and it had share capital of 100,000 euros. Waymo Switzerland GmbH was founded in Zurich on July 31, from the location of the head office of Google Switzerland, Inc. On July 24, Waymo Korea Limited was founded in Seoul.

None of the six was announced.

Germany’s Level 4 approval remains the key hurdle

The Munich timing relies on approvals that the company does not have. The German Federal Motor Transport Authority issues type approval for Level 4 systems, i.e., those that are completely autonomous within specific situations and do not provide for any human backup, which Waymo lacks.

Mobileye and Volkswagen have already obtained German testing permits, per Gadget Review. Waymo says it is working with the federal authority alongside Bavarian and Munich officials.

The 2021 law on autonomous driving in Germany made the nation the first in the EU to have a pathway for Level 4 vehicles to function in designated areas, which explains why testing has been done in Germany. There is a similar legal structure in place in France since 2021, allowing WeRide to operate its driverless minibus near Valence.

London could beat Munich to public robotaxi service

The sequence puts Munich behind two markets already in motion. Waymo aims to begin public rides in London as soon as September, having tested there since late 2025.

As Cryptopolitan reported, that launch was announced in October 2025 with Moove handling fleet operations, and it set up the first direct contest between American and Chinese robotaxis, with Baidu’s Apollo Go entering through Uber and Lyft partnerships.

Waymo currently operates over 3,500 cars in 11 US cities, offers over 500,000 commercial rides every week, and claims over 350 million autonomous kilometers driven. Munich is the third-largest city in Germany and the country’s densest city; it offers a tougher operating environment compared to the American sunbelt where that record was built.

The smartest crypto minds already read our newsletter. Want in? Join them.