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Your next taxi across London might not
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have a driver. Alphabet's self-driving
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arm, Waymo, just closed a massive $16
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billion funding round, and London is
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officially in their sights. This isn't
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just another tech experiment. This fresh
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capital, led by parent company Alphabet,
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alongside Andreessen Horowitz and
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Fidelity, is designed to scale the Waymo
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driver system commercially. While
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they're already clocking over 100,000
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paid trips a week in cities like Phoenix
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and San Francisco, the UK capital is the
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next major frontier. Waymo has already
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been spotted testing its Jaguar I-Pace
0:34
fleet on London's tricky, narrow streets
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to map the environment. This new influx
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of cash is the final signal that the
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regulatory and technical push for a
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London launch is accelerating. We are
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looking at a future where the Gherkin
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and The Shard are the backdrop for a
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completely autonomous ride-hailing app.
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But, the big question is, would you
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actually trust an AI to navigate
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Piccadilly Circus at rush hour? Tag a
0:56
friend who'd be too nervous to get in,
0:58
and follow City A.M. for the latest on
1:01
when these hit the streets.
