Alphabet-owned Waymo in talks to raise $15 billion in funding

Driverless car company Waymo is in talks to raise $15 billion in funding in the new year.

Robotaxi company plans to raise billions of dollars AlphabetIts parent company and outside investors value it at up to $110 billion, according to a person familiar with the discussions.

The latest funding discussions are indicative of Waymo’s status as the leader of the pack in the US robotaxi market. The company is spending heavily to increase its fleet and continue to expand into more regions. Waymo is currently either operating its robotaxi, plans to put it into service, or has begun testing its vehicles in 26 markets in the U.S. and abroad.

According to CNBC’s report on Tuesday, Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai said Waymo will make a “meaningful” contribution to Alphabet’s financials as soon as 2027.

If Google’s sister company raises up to $15 billion, it would represent more than double the last funding round. This was a $5.6 billion Series C round at a $45 billion valuation that closed in October 2024. Alphabet had committed $5 billion in a multi-year investment in Waymo at the time.

This round was led by Alphabet, along with previous backers including Andreessen Horowitz, Fidelity, Perry Creek, Silver Lake, Tiger Global and T. Rowe Price. At the time, Waymo’s co-CEOs Tekedra Mawakana and Dmitri Dolgov said the funding would go towards expanding its robotaxi service.

Waymo currently offers paid rides to the public in the Austin, San Francisco Bay Area, Phoenix, Atlanta and Los Angeles markets.

Earlier this month, CNBC reported that Waymo’s weekly paid rides had surpassed an estimated 450,000, and the company announced it was rolling out the service in December. 14 million trips In 2025, it will be on pace to finish the year with over 20 million total rides since its launch in 2020.

The company plans to open service in Dallas, Denver, Detroit, Houston, Las Vegas, Miami, Nashville, Orlando, San Antonio, San Diego and Washington DC next year. Waymo also announced plans to launch its service in London in 2026, which will be the company’s first overseas service region.

Amazon’s This year, Zoox began offering free self-driving rides to the public on the Las Vegas Strip and some San Francisco neighborhoods. Tesla’s It launched a service branded Robotaxi in Austin and the San Francisco Bay Area, but as of mid-December those cars still had human drivers or safety inspectors.

Fundraising plans reported for the first time Bloomberg.

WRISTWATCH: 2025: The year robotaxi becomes widespread, led by Waymo