Waymo reveals custom chip powering its next-gen robotaxi system
Waymo this week detailed a custom 5 nm chip that processes sensor data for its robotaxis, part of a broader push to cut costs, alongside several other industry deals and regulatory developments.
Waymo has shared new details about its sixth-generation self-driving system, which powers its next-generation Ojai robotaxi — now open to all riders in Los Angeles, Phoenix, and San Francisco. The company has long said Ojai is cheaper to build, operate, and maintain, but it only recently became clear how deeply involved Waymo is in its own hardware development.
A custom chip
Waymo built its own 5 nanometer ASIC chip designed to process the massive volume of raw sensor data — the Ojai has 13 high-fidelity cameras — before it reaches the core of the self-driving system. The chip delivers more than 1,000 TOPS of computing performance, putting it roughly on par with Nvidia's latest DRIVE AGX Thor automotive processor. Waymo also named several compute partners, including AMD, Micron, Nvidia, Samsung, Sandisk, Socionext, and TSMC.
Other industry moves
Also, the vehicle startup spun out of Rivian, raised another $150 million, bringing its total to $455 million since launching in March 2025; its focus has expanded from e-bikes to autonomous delivery vehicles. Serve Robotics signed new deals with Grubhub and expanded its DoorDash partnership after Uber cut back on using its sidewalk robots. Swedish company Einride agreed to buy 500 Tesla Semi electric trucks. Uber announced an investment in drone delivery company Zipline, aiming for 1 million daily deliveries by the end of 2029.
On the regulatory side, Tesla, Uber, and Waymo received permits from Nevada regulators to run commercial robotaxi services in Clark County, potentially deploying up to 8,000 vehicles. Uber was fined €825 million by the Dutch Data Protection Authority for deactivating driver accounts through automated systems without adequate notice. Meanwhile, Waymo has responded, with redactions, to U.S. safety regulator NHTSA's investigation into a low-speed crash involving a child.
