Waymo announced Oct. 20 that it is preparing to bring its autonomous ride-hailing service to Spain, starting in the Region of Madrid. The company says manual driving and street mapping will come before technical validation with local autonomous specialists, and it aims to welcome its first riders in 2027. The announcement is a planned expansion, not evidence that fully driverless rides are already operating. Madrid's regional government had previously said it wanted to become the first European region with autonomous car and taxi services, describing its policy ambition before Waymo named the region as its first Spanish market. For residents, the real test will be whether the service clears local regulatory and safety requirements and works on Madrid's streets; those steps are still ahead.