Transport for London has approved modified Wayve vehicles as licensed private hire vehicles, clearing the way for Uber to launch supervised autonomous ride-hailing in the city. Up to 15 modified Ford Mustang Mach-E vehicles will run on a one-year trial, each with a licensed safety driver on board.
The approval puts Uber and Wayve ahead of rivals Waymo and Baidu, neither of which has secured a similar London permit yet. More than 100,000 Londoners have joined a waitlist for the service since June 2026, and supervised passenger trips are expected to begin later this summer.
A fully driverless service would still require a separate Automated Passenger Services permit from the UK's DVSA. TfL said the licensing decision aligns with its Vision Zero road-safety goal, underscoring that human oversight remains mandatory for now even as the robotaxi race in Europe accelerates.