Waymo, the self-driving unit of Google parent Alphabet, is pushing a plan to expand its robotaxi operation to five times its current size. It is moving to speed up a global expansion of its driverless taxi business based on competitiveness secured in the U.S. market.

InsideEVs reported on Oct. 20 that Waymo is reviewing a plan to increase its autonomous vehicles from about 4,000 now to 8,000 by end-2026 and to 20,000 by end-2027. The plan was first reported by business outlet Semafor, citing sources familiar with internal matters.

Waymo is seen as a leading operator in the U.S. robotaxi market. As of September, it operated services in 15 major cities across 8 U.S. states, and weekly paid rides topped 500,000.

It is also pursuing expansion overseas. Waymo is testing self-driving technology in London and Tokyo and plans to expand its business to Canada, Singapore and Spain.

It also raised funds needed for expansion. Waymo secured a $5 billion loan on Oct. 8. The company said it would use the funds to expand fully autonomous ride-hailing services in the United States and overseas.

Hyundai Motor and China's Geely Automobile play a key role in vehicle supply. Hyundai Motor plans to produce tens of thousands of Ioniq 5 robotaxis for Waymo in the United States. The box-shaped vehicle Ojai supplied by Zeekr, a Geely unit, is also being deployed in Waymo's service.

Still, the business cannot be expanded through vehicle supply alone. Self-driving sensors and computers must be integrated into vehicles, and charging, cleaning and maintenance facilities as well as remote support staff must also be added.

In particular, operating systems to respond to unexpected road situations and 대응 to regulations by region are also key tasks.

Rivals such as Tesla have also entered the robotaxi business, but Waymo is ahead in terms of current operating scale. If it builds a 20,000-vehicle system by end-2027 as planned, it is expected to be able to further strengthen its position in the market.

Waymo, meanwhile, has not stated an official position on specific targets for expanding its vehicle fleet.