Advice, not control: the role of Remote Assistance in Waymo’s operations
Our mission at Waymo is to be the world’s most trusted driver, and we are committed to earning the public’s trust through transparency and proven road safety outcomes. As we expand around the world, we are investing in an operations team that matches our global scale, including U.S.-based operations personnel and global operations teams, to ensure seamless, safe, 24/7 operations worldwide.
In 2024 we published a detailed outline describing how our Remote Assistance (RA) works. Though some have compared the function to aircraft dispatch, based on my decade as a U.S. Naval aviator flying F-14s and F/A-18s, I can firmly say that analogy is wrong. Aircraft dispatch is responsible for active flight monitoring, weather routing, and mechanical oversight for the duration of a journey.
Waymo’s service does not rely on remote drivers. RA does not continuously monitor a vehicle or set of vehicles. Instead, they respond to specific requests for information initiated by the Waymo Driver – our automated driving system (ADS) – and provide advice which the system can decide to use or reject. Our vehicle-to-RA connection is also as fast as the blink of an eye. Median one-way latency is approximately 150 milliseconds for U.S. based operations centers and 250 milliseconds for RA based abroad.
Waymo RA is composed of different functions, including our Event Response Team (ERT) which is exclusively based in the U.S. Waymo’s ERT is certified for more complex tasks like coordinating with emergency responders and managing post-collision protocols.
Despite differences in role and responsibilities, all RA agents must have and maintain driver’s licenses and are rigorously vetted, including a comprehensive review of their driving history, thorough criminal background checks, initial and ongoing drug testing, and color blindness and spatial recognition assessments. As of February 17, 2026, there are approximately 70 Remote Assistance agents on duty worldwide at any given time, including ERT. For context, Waymo currently has a fleet of 3,000 vehicles. Every week, our vehicles drive over four million miles and provide over 400,000 rides.
Waymo is committed to safety and transparency, and we’ll continue to work with lawmakers and regulators around the world as we scale our service globally. To learn more about how RA works at Waymo, you can view our letter to Congress here.