Waymo driverless cars spotted in Uptown

CHARLOTTE — Vehicles owned by the driverless car service Waymo were spotted in a gravel lot in Uptown Charlotte Tuesday, sparking conversation among the people who saw them.

While people’s opinions differ, the service continues to grow in the Southeast. Waymo expanded into Atlanta in 2025 and started in Orlando Tuesday. All in all, ten cities in the United State have Waymo cars motoring people around town.

According to the company’s website, the car uses GPS and AI for its driverless technology. The company says their teams map out areas before their cars are set loose.

“We saw them in San Francisco last year, it was pretty cool,” Julie Liu told Channel 9’s Eli Brand. “I saw people get on and get out, and the car saw the traffic lights, when to stop, when to slow down.”

However, there have been concerns with the service before. In Atlanta last year, video showed a car going around a school bus with its stop sign extended and lights flashing. The company says it has since addressed that issue with a software update.

In L.A., video showed a car even driving through a police standoff.

“It’s kind of scary,” Yolando Watts said. “With technology, you never know when something might go wrong.”

The company says their mission is to make streets safer and be the world’s most-trusted driver, but for several people in Charlotte, the verdict is still out.

On the company’s website, 18 cities both in the U.S. and abroad are listed as future sites for the driverless cars. Charlotte is not included on that list.

We have reached out to the company and the city of Charlotte to see why those cars are in the Queen City and if the service will be starting here.

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