Waymo is scaling back its self-driving truck ambitions

Photo by Vjeran Pavic / The Verge

Waymo is pausing its efforts to develop autonomous truck technology to refocus on ridehailing services instead. The Alphabet-owned company announced today that it will push back" the timeline on its commercial and operational efforts for trucking and will also be scaling back development in the unit. A small number of employees were laid off as a result of the decision.

Waymo's trucking unit, also known as Waymo Via, sat alongside its Waymo One robotaxi division. Taken together, they represent the company's efforts to commercialize its autonomous driving technology. Now the timeline and the future of its autonomous trucks are in question.

The news follows reporting earlier this year that Waymo would slightly" delay its Via timeline...

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