Waymo has a big lead in driverless cars—but here’s how it could lose it

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Waymo has long had a sizable lead in self-driving technology, and recent reports indicate that Larry Page, CEO of Waymo parent company Alphabet, is determined not to let it slip away. According to The Information's Amir Efrati, Waymo CEO John Krafcik is under pressure to launch a commercial service in the Phoenix metro area as soon as this fall.

But at a Monday event with reporters at Waymo's Castle testing grounds in California's Central Valley, Krafcik was non-committal about the company's launch plans. In fact, he cast doubt on whether a driverless taxi service would even be Waymo's first product, as almost everyone has assumed it would be.

"We'll have to see," Krafcik said, noting that the company was also working on self-driving truck technology. "We're also considering working directly with cities."

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