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Waymo’s 300 Million Driverless Miles Come With a Growing Cost
Waymo has driven more than 300 million fully autonomous miles and operates in 15 U.S.
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- Waymo has driven more than 300 million fully autonomous miles and operates in 15 U.S.
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openai.comCreate a landscape editorial hero image for this Studio Global article: What did Alphabet’s October 28, 2026, third-quarter earnings update reveal about Waymo’s growth beyond 300 million fully autonomous miles, c. Article summary: Alphabet’s update showed Waymo expanding its autonomous-driving footprint rapidly, while remaining part of a very small revenue segment with widening losses.[2][8][6] The available evidence supports that central picture,. Topic tags: general, general web. Style: premium digital editorial illustration, source-backed research mood, clean composition, high detail, modern web publication hero. Use reference image context only for broad subject, composition, and topical grounding; do not copy the exact image. Avoid: logos, brand marks, copyrighted characters, real person likenesses, fake screenshots, UI text, readable text, watermarks, charts with fake numbers, clic
Waymo has crossed a major operating milestone: Alphabet said the robotaxi company had driven more than 300 million fully autonomous miles and was serving 15 major U.S. cities as of its October 28, 2026, earnings call.2 The update also underscored the gap between Waymo’s expanding footprint and the financial scale of Alphabet’s “Other Bets” segment, which includes the company but is not a standalone account of its results.
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More cities, with international plans ahead
Alphabet said Waymo had recently opened public service in San Antonio, San Diego and Tampa. It also listed Canada, Germany, Singapore and Spain as planned expansion markets.2 These are plans, not confirmation that service is already operating in those countries.
A Toronto launch is targeted for 2028, according to reporting on Waymo’s Canadian plans.18 CNBC reported that Waymo had said it planned to roll out robotaxi rides in Germany in 2027.
33 Both dates describe future targets, not completed launches.
The business is expanding faster than its reported revenue base
Alphabet reported $372 million in quarterly revenue for Other Bets, up 8% from a year earlier. The segment represented about 0.3% of Alphabet’s total revenue, while its operating loss widened to $2.05 billion from $1.43 billion.33 Alphabet’s earnings-call summary rounded the segment’s operating loss to $2 billion.
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Those figures need a careful reading: Alphabet groups Waymo with other businesses in Other Bets, so the segment’s revenue and losses should not be presented as Waymo’s standalone financial results.17 CNBC described Waymo as a “niche cash-burning business,” but the reported segment figures do not show how much of the loss came from Waymo specifically.
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Funding supports the next stage of expansion
Waymo announced that it had closed a $5 billion term loan, describing it as its first debt financing and saying the capital would support expansion in the United States and internationally.38 The financing provides another source of capital as the company scales, but it does not change the distinction between Waymo’s operating milestones and Alphabet’s segment-level financial reporting.
Alphabet’s results provide context—not a Waymo income statement
Alphabet reported third-quarter revenue of $127.6 billion, up 25% year over year, and earnings per share of $2.12.13 The company also reported negative other income and expenses of $8.2 billion, primarily due to an unrealized loss on its SpaceX investment.
3 That investment-related loss is separate from Other Bets’ operating loss and should not be attributed to Waymo.
The clearest takeaway is that Waymo’s reach is growing: it has passed 300 million fully autonomous miles, entered public service in more U.S. cities and announced international plans. But Alphabet’s disclosures do not isolate Waymo’s revenue or operating costs, so the segment’s widening loss is evidence of the cost of Alphabet’s broader Other Bets portfolio—not a precise measure of Waymo’s individual economics.2
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Waymo has driven more than 300 million fully autonomous miles and operates in 15 U.S.
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abc.xyzAlphabet Investor Relations - 2026 Q3 Earnings Call
cnbc.comAs Waymo expands overseas, it remains a niche cash-burning ...
theglobeandmail.comSelf-driving taxi company Waymo to launch in Toronto, plans to begin service in 2028