Robotaxi service debuts on London's busy streets as Europe weighs more self-driving vehicles

LONDON (AP) — Uber and British tech company Wayve are launching London's first self-driving taxi service on Thursday, giving residents a chance to use technology that's already available in many U.S. cities and other parts of the world.

The two companies said they're starting with a small rollout of Ford Mustang Mach-E electric vehicles outfitted with Wayve's autonomous vehicle technology.

Compared with the U.S. and China — countries where robotaxis operate autonomously in several cities, with no human driver — Europe has been taking a more cautious approach on self-driving cabs.

In London, there will still be a person behind the wheel overseeing the trip who can grab the wheel or tap the brakes if there’s a problem.

Under the U.K. government's pilot framework, self-driving taxi operators like Uber and Wayve still need approval to operate without a human safety driver. “That process is still playing out,” and it’s not clear how long it will take, said Sarfraz Maredia, Uber’s head of autonomous mobility.

Robotaxi companies have been testing their vehicles on London streets as Britain moves to adopt national regulations. Waymo and Chinese tech company Baidu are also gearing up to offer commercial passenger service in London, which poses unique challenges to robotaxis because its narrow and famously convoluted roads are frequently congested with cars, buses, bicycles and electric rental bikes.

Pedestrians also pose a bigger challenge in London because jaywalking is not against the law.

Many countries in Europe are still in the testing phase. Uber said last month it launched its first European commercial robotaxi service in Zagreb, Croatia, in partnership with a local operator and China's Pony.ai, but human safety drivers are still required.

Meanwhile in the United States, Waymo, owned by Google parent Alphabet, now operates fully autonomous taxi service in 14 cities, while Amazon's Zoox and Tesla are catching up.

In China, Baidu, WeRide and Pony.AI operate robotaxi services in multiple cities. They've also been expanding into the Middle East in partnerships with Uber or local fleet operators in Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Saudi Arabia.

The deployment in London will start with under 20 vehicles and expand from there, Maredia said.

Uber customers won’t be able to specifically request a robotaxi, but they could be matched with a Wayve vehicle when they hail a ride on the app, which they can accept or reject. Prices won’t be any different from a regular Uber ride. Passengers won’t be prompted to tip at the end of a robotaxi trip, the company said.

Safraz Maredia, global Head of Autonomous Mobility & Delivery at Uber, speaks to Associated Press in London, Tuesday, Sept. 1, 2026 as Uber officially launches the first hailable driverless cabs in London.(AP Photo/Frank Augstein)

A client orders an autonomous car on his mobile phone in London, Tuesday, Sept. 1, 2026 as Uber officially launches the first hailable autonomous cabs in London.(AP Photo/Frank Augstein)

An autonomous car drives through the streets in Westminster, London, Tuesday, Sept. 1, 2026 as Uber officially launches the first hailable autonomous cabs in London.(AP Photo/Frank Augstein)

An autonomous car drives through the streets in Westminster, London, Tuesday, Sept. 1, 2026 as Uber officially launches the first hailable autonomous cabs in London.(AP Photo/Frank Augstein)

An Uber driver has his hands ready for intervention as he sits in an autonomous car in London, Tuesday, Sept. 1, 2026 as Uber officially launches the first hailable autonomous cabs in London.(AP Photo/Frank Augstein)

The Kennedy Center took down Wednesday a sculpture known as Blue, the latest change to the cultural and performing arts center that stirred some pushback in President Donald Trump's second term.

The sculpture, a tall, blue stick figure poised in action — as if to kick a ball or, from a different angle, having just kicked one — was designed by sculptor Joel Shapiro and installed in 2019.

The removal follows a longer-running saga with the Kennedy Center, where the Trump-aligned board is fighting in court for the right to plaster the president's name on the historic institution. It falls within a broader effort to reshape Washington to Trump's liking, including demolishing the White House's East Wing to build a ballroom, a proposed triumphal arch near Arlington National Cemetery and a renovated golf course.

Shapiro, known for breathing life into otherwise minimalist stick figures, described Blue in a video posted to the Kennedy Center’s YouTube years ago as being “about action and risk and performance and energy. It’s a celebration of possibility.”

Shapiro died in 2025, and Blue will no longer celebrate possibility at the Kennedy Center, though it may be reinstalled elsewhere through the Joel Shapiro and Ellen Phelan Foundation.

A crane could be seen Wednesday taking down the sculpture’s appendages, with the arms and legs wrapped protectively, as people in hi-vis vests worked around it in the sun.

“We are deeply grateful to Joel Shapiro for the years Blue has spent animating our campus and connecting visitors to his vision,” the Kennedy Center said in an emailed statement. “We are honored to have been stewards of his vibrant work and a part of his enduring legacy.”

Michael Sebastiani stood nearby as Blue was disassembled or, as he put it, “dismembered.” Sebastiani is part of the group Hands Off the Arts, partly formed to push back against the Trump administration's changes to the Kennedy Center.

“Art is what makes you think, and that’s its role in life,” he said, saying the sculpture was “a very welcoming fixture, if you will, for folks coming into the city, and we’re just really sad to see her gone.”

Sebastiani said Blue was the mascot for National Dance Day on Sept. 19, with events held near it on a 2019 addition to the Kennedy Center campus called The REACH. Blue, said Sebastiani, “brings the joy and happiness that is part of that celebration.”

Workers remove the sculpture "Blue" by artist Joel Shapiro on the grounds of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, Wednesday, Sept. 2, 2026. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

Workers remove the sculpture "Blue" by artist Joel Shapiro on the grounds of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, Wednesday, Sept. 2, 2026. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

Workers remove the sculpture "Blue" by artist Joel Shapiro on the grounds of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, Wednesday, Sept. 2, 2026. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)