B1 Reading: Waymo vs Uber, Friends or Enemies?
Read about Waymo and Uber and fill in the gaps.
Word Bank
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In 2009, two very different companies started in California. Uber started an app to help people a taxi with their phone. At the same time, Google started a secret project to build cars that could drive themselves. That project later became Waymo.
At first, there was no problem. But both companies had the same : taxis without drivers. In 2016, Uber bought a small self-driving company started by a former Google engineer. Waymo said that the engineer had thousands of secret files before he left Google, and in 2017 it took Uber to . In 2018, the two companies to end the case, and Uber gave Waymo shares worth about $245 million.
Later, Uber building its own self-driving cars. Then something surprising happened: the two rivals became . From 2023, people in some American cities could order a Waymo robotaxi through the Uber app.
But the friendship didn't . Waymo grew very fast. By early 2026, it was giving around half a million paid rides every week in more than ten US cities, and it wants people to use its own app. In 2026, it its partnership with Uber in Phoenix, and it plans to leave Uber's app in other cities too. Meanwhile, Uber is spending more than $10 billion on robotaxis from other companies, and it plans to with Waymo directly in San Francisco and London.
So are they friends or enemies? Maybe both. There is a word for this: "frenemies". One thing is : the race to replace taxi drivers with robots is only just starting. Would you feel in a car with no driver?
At first, there was no problem. But both companies had the same : taxis without drivers. In 2016, Uber bought a small self-driving company started by a former Google engineer. Waymo said that the engineer had thousands of secret files before he left Google, and in 2017 it took Uber to . In 2018, the two companies to end the case, and Uber gave Waymo shares worth about $245 million.
Later, Uber building its own self-driving cars. Then something surprising happened: the two rivals became . From 2023, people in some American cities could order a Waymo robotaxi through the Uber app.
But the friendship didn't . Waymo grew very fast. By early 2026, it was giving around half a million paid rides every week in more than ten US cities, and it wants people to use its own app. In 2026, it its partnership with Uber in Phoenix, and it plans to leave Uber's app in other cities too. Meanwhile, Uber is spending more than $10 billion on robotaxis from other companies, and it plans to with Waymo directly in San Francisco and London.
So are they friends or enemies? Maybe both. There is a word for this: "frenemies". One thing is : the race to replace taxi drivers with robots is only just starting. Would you feel in a car with no driver?