Waymo is now allowed to carry passengers in its self-driving cars in California

Waymo

A Waymo test vehicle.

• Waymo has received a permit to carry passengers in its self-driving vehicles in California, TechCrunch's Kirsten Korosec first reported.
• But the Google spinoff cannot charge for rides, and the vehicles must have a safety driver behind the wheel.
• Waymo is the fourth company to receive California's autonomous-vehicle pilot permit, after Zoox, Autox Technologies, and Pony.ai.
• Seen by many experts as the leader in the autonomous-vehicle industry, Waymo launched the first commercial, autonomous ride-hailing service in the United States, Waymo One, in parts of Arizona in 2018.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Waymo has received a permit to carry passengers in its self-driving vehicles in California, TechCrunch's Kirsten Korosec first reported on Tuesday.

The permit, which was issued by the California Public Utilities Commission on Tuesday, allows Waymo to carry passengers in autonomous vehicles on California highways, though the Google spinoff cannot charge them for rides, and the vehicles must have a safety driver behind the wheel.

Waymo did not immediately respond to Business Insider's request for comment.

Read more: Waymo CEO John Krafcik explains why a parking lot is one of the most difficult environments for a self-driving car

Waymo is the fourth company to receive California's autonomous-vehicle pilot permit, after Zoox, Autox Technologies, and Pony.ai. Seen by many experts as the leader in the autonomous-vehicle industry, Waymo launched the first commercial, autonomous ride-hailing service in the United States, Waymo One, in parts of Arizona in 2018.

In a 2019 report, the consulting firm Navigant Research, ranked Waymo first among companies developing self-driving technology in strategy and execution. And according to a report Waymo submitted to the California Department of Motor Vehicles, its safety drivers had to manually take over their test cars, because of safety concerns, about once every 11,000 miles in 2018 - the best rate of any company testing autonomous vehicles on public roads in California.

The ability to carry passengers in its California test vehicles brings Waymo closer to being able to launch Waymo One in the state, though the company has not disclosed a timeline for when it hopes to do so. Waymo is also testing autonomous vehicles in Washington, Texas, Michigan, and Georgia.