The AV Weekly: New Robotaxi Cities, Route Expansions, and Software Updates

Welcome to the first edition of The AV Weekly, your roundup of the most important autonomous vehicle news. Here is what happened this week in the world of self-driving cars, robotaxis, and autonomous technology.

Tesla Cybercab Hits the Production Line

Tesla shared a photo of the first Cybercab rolling off the Gigafactory Texas production line on February 17. The purpose-built robotaxi, which has no steering wheel or pedals, enters a slow production ramp ahead of a broader rollout. Tesla aims for volume production by the end of 2026, with a long-term goal of 2 million units per year. The Cybercab is expected to cost between $20,000 and $25,000 per vehicle.

Waymo Plans 20+ New Cities in 2026

Waymo continues its aggressive expansion, targeting more than 20 new cities this year, including international markets like Tokyo and London. The company has already completed over 14 million fully driverless trips and logged more than 127 million rider-only miles. In San Francisco, Waymo's market share of ride-hailing trips reached nearly 25% by August 2025. Revenue for the year hit $286 million.

Mercedes Pauses Level 3, Pivots to Level 2++

Mercedes-Benz confirmed it will not include its Level 3 Drive Pilot system in the facelifted 2026 S-Class. Citing low consumer demand, high sensor costs, and the bankruptcy of LiDAR supplier Luminar, Mercedes is pivoting to MB.Drive Assist Pro, a Level 2++ system that works in more driving scenarios including city traffic. The company is redirecting resources toward a next-generation Level 3 system capable of 81 mph operation and a Level 4 system in partnership with Nvidia, targeting the next S-Class generation around 2028-2030.

Baidu Apollo Go Launches in Dubai

Baidu's Apollo Go robotaxi service has launched in Dubai through a partnership with Uber. The Chinese company already operates over 1,000 fully driverless vehicles across 15 cities in China and has completed more than 11 million rides. After Dubai, Baidu plans to enter Germany, the UK, Singapore, Malaysia, and Switzerland during 2026.

Aurora Expands Driverless Freight Network

Aurora Innovation now operates driverless freight trucks along a 1,000-mile route between Fort Worth, Texas, and Phoenix, Arizona, the longest continuous driverless trucking run in the US. The company has reported a perfect safety record of 250,000 driverless miles with zero attributed collisions and expects its fleet to exceed 200 vehicles by year-end. Aurora's commercial truck capacity is fully booked through Q3 2026.

Numbers to Know

• $97 billion: Projected global robotaxi market size by 2032
• 127 million: Fully driverless miles logged by Waymo
• 1,000+: Baidu Apollo Go driverless vehicles in operation
• 85%: Waymo's reduction in injury-causing crashes vs. human drivers
• 200: Aurora's expected fleet size by end of 2026