Waymo has been allowed to start testing its autonomous vehicles at San Francisco International Airport before the commercial service.
The office of the mayor of San Francisco announced On Tuesday that the airport, known as SFO, and Waymo have signed a “pilot license test” after years of back-and-forth negotiations. The SFO deal comes just two weeks after Waymo cleared to start the test at San Jose Mineta’s nearby international airport-and as Tesla also tries to embrace his way by offering a driving service to these airports.
SFO is not the first airport to serve Waymo. The company has been operating at Phoenix’s Sky Harbor Airport from 2023, but SFO is a target for Waymo for as long as not more, as it is the largest airport to serve the domestic base of Silicon Valley.
Airport authorities initially rejected Waymo back in 2023But this year Waymo was allowed to start mapping the airport, a clear indication that the relationship had been settled.
The recently granted permit allows Waymo to proceed with three phases. The first will see Waymo try his AVs in autonomous mode with a “trained specialist” behind the steering wheel. The second will include the test of Waymo Passenger Service with employees and airport staff. The third phase will allow Waymo to start offering paid walks.
As soon as Waymo enters this third phase, the company says it will offer pickups and drop-offs at the Airport’s “Kiss & Fly Area”, which requires a ride on air carriers to reach the terminals. The company says it intends to “explore other locations at the airport in the future”.
Waymo spokesman Chris Bonelli told TechCrunch that the company would start testing “very soon”, but refused to put a time frame in the other phases. He said that the third phase of the offer offered paid strolls would continue on the basis of “month to month”, while Waymo works with SFO on a “prolonged license for commercial businesses”.
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Offer rides to and from SFO would be the last one on a growing list of successes for Waymo this year. The company has expanded to many new cities, with a growing number of partners, such as Uber, and many others are on the horizon for 2026. Waymo is increasing its Silicon Valley area, making SFO serving more and more inescapable.
This story has been updated with new information from Waymo about the timetable.
