Waymo, Alphabet's self-driving tech development unit, has started testing its autonomous taxis in Atlanta, Georgia, marking its latest city for deployment. The initial phase involves manually driven cars for mapping and environmental familiarization, with plans to operate robotaxis without a human safety driver eventually.

Despite Georgia's lax regulations on autonomous vehicles, which allow for the deployment of fully autonomous vehicles, Waymo has not confirmed any commercial launch plans in Atlanta or other cities.

Analyst QuickTake: Recently, Waymo expanded its operations, including launching paid services in Los Angeles and extending its commercial service in San Francisco. The company has also initiated driverless rides for employees in Austin, with plans to offer services to the public later. Waymo has a history of more cautious expansion but has also faced issues such as software recalls and accidents involving its vehicles.