Alphabet’s self-driving car division Waymo has struck a deal with five companies to offer transportation for their customers in the Phoenix area.
“We know from our early riders that most of their rides are to run errands, shop for groceries, commute to work, head to dinner or fix their personal vehicles,” Waymo said in a blog post. “We’ve tailored our partnerships to meet the top rider needs; in fact, the partnerships below represent eight of the top ten activities our riders do when they get in a Waymo.”
Waymo vehicles will pick up customers and drive them to various locations in the Phoenix area. In some cases, customers will be offered savings or deals in order to be shuttled around in Waymo vehicles.
Here is an overview of the companies included in the program:
Walmart: Customers will receive discounts on ordering groceries from Walmart.com. Waymo will transport customers to and from Walmart to pick up their groceries.
AutoNation: AutoNation dealerships will offer customers Waymo rides while their vehicle is being serviced.
Avis: Waymo will drop off and pick up rental car customers at two locations in the Phoenix suburb of Chandler.
DDR Corp.: The owner of shopping centers will offer shoppers and diners Waymo rides.
Element Hotel: “Select guests” will have access to Waymo vehicles for local trips.
Waymo rides to certain Walmart locations will begin this week, while other participants will come online over several weeks. Waymo’s early rider test program, consisting of about 400 people around Phoenix, will be the first customers to be offered rides under the new program. Rides will paid for by the companies partnering with Waymo.
“While these are Metro Phoenix-specific partnerships today, these businesses are national and what we learn from these programs will give us a network of partners when we launch in new cities down the road,” Waymo said in a blog post.