Waymo has spent the last three years refining and testing a minivan-like vehicle made by the Chinese automaker Zeekr. Now, before this robotaxi joins Waymo’s official commercial fleet, it is getting a new name. The Zeekr RT robotaxi will now be called Ojai, pronounced “oh-hi,” after the village in the Topatopa Mountains above Los Angeles known for its arts community and focus on wellness.
According to Waymo spokesperson Chris Bonelli, the company determined the U.S. public is not familiar with the Zeekr brand. That branding may even extend to the rider experience. When customers eventually enter the Ojai, the robotaxi is expected to greet them with an “Oh hi” and their name.
Waymo first struck a partnership with Geely Holding Group-owned Zeekr in 2021. The company showed off a concept of a purpose-built robotaxi the following year at an event in Los Angeles. The prototype was based on a version of Zeekr’s SEA-M architecture designed for future mobility products like robotaxis and logistics vehicles. Notably, that prototype did not have a steering wheel, but the Ojai model shown at CES 2026 does.
The Zeekr RT, now Ojai, has undergone fine-tuning over years of development and testing in cities like Phoenix and San Francisco. Last year at CES, Waymo gave the robotaxi the now-retired name Zeekr RT and showcased its hardware, including 13 cameras, four lidar units, six radar systems, an array of external audio receivers, and very small sensor wipers.
That hardware suite remains the same, but the paint color has been tweaked. Waymo states the color, which had a bluish tint, is now more silver.
All these final adjustments come ahead of Ojai’s imminent launch into commercial service. Waymo employees and their families and friends can now hail the Zeekr van in San Francisco and Phoenix, which is typically one of the last steps before it becomes available to the public.
Waymo is in the midst of a rapid expansion. The company, which offers a commercial robotaxi service in Atlanta, Austin, Los Angeles, Phoenix, and San Francisco, plans to launch in a dozen more cities over the next year. Those cities include Denver, Las Vegas, and London.