Waymo, Alphabet’s autonomous vehicle unit, will begin testing its robotaxis in Denver and Seattle this week with safety drivers behind the wheel.

The company will start with manual driving to validate its technology before fully autonomous services are considered.

Waymo already runs commercial robotaxi services in Austin, Atlanta, San Francisco, Phoenix, and Los Angeles.

In some locations, including Austin and Atlanta, only driverless rides can be booked through the Uber app, while other rides require Waymo’s own Waymo One app.

The Denver and Seattle test fleet will include up to 12 vehicles in each city, featuring electric Jaguar iPace and Geely Zeekr models.

Waymo is also conducting similar tests in New York after recently obtaining permits.

Globally, Waymo competes with Baidu’s Apollo Go, which operates across Asia, and faces competition from Tesla, which is testing manned robotaxi services in Austin and San Francisco.

Recent Waymo developments