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Waymo is sending autonomous vehicles to Japan for first international tests

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Waymo is sending autonomous vehicles to Japan for first international tests

Waymo’s autonomous vehicles are going to Tokyo, marking the first time that the Alphabet company is deploying vehicles on public roads in a foreign market.

Waymo is billing the excursion as a simple “road trip” for collecting data about the nuances of Japanese driving, including left-hand traffic and navigating a dense urban environment. The vehicles will be driven manually for the purposes of gathering mapping data and will be managed by a local taxi fleet operator, Nihon Kotsu. About 25 vehicles will be sent, with the first set to arrive in early 2025.

And while the tests will undoubtedly be seen as laying the groundwork for a future Tokyo-based robotaxi service, Waymo said it isn’t ready to announce anything quite yet.

“While we look forward to bringing the life-saving benefits of the Waymo Driver global, we have no plans to serve riders in Tokyo at this time,” Waymo spokesperson Sandy Karp said. “Rather, we’re bringing our technology to learn and understand how Waymo fits into the existing transportation landscape and learning how to best partner with local officials and communities.”

The inclusion of GO, a popular taxi app in Japan, in the strategic partnership could signal Waymo’s intention to put its autonomous vehicles into service through a locally based mobility provider. Waymo is already doing this in the US, making its autonomous vehicles available on Uber’s ridehail app in Austin and Atlanta.

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“We have no plans to serve riders in Tokyo at this time”

Waymo’s robotaxi business in the US is growing, albeit slowly. The company currently has approximately 700 vehicles in operation in several cities, including San Francisco, Los Angeles, Austin, and Phoenix. It also plans to launch a robotaxi service in Atlanta in an exclusive partnership with Uber and is planning to launch in Miami in 2026. Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai recently said that Waymo was providing 175,000 paid trips per week, or about a million miles.

In Tokyo, Waymo’s vehicles will be operated by trained autonomous specialists employed by Nihon Kotsu. Once the company feels like it’s ready, it will transition to hands-free autonomous driving with a safety driver behind the wheel. Karp wouldn’t say whether that would eventually progress to fully driverless operations. The vehicles will be geofenced to certain neighborhoods in Tokyo, including Minato, Shinjuku, Shibuya, Chiyoda, Chūō, Shinagawa, and Kōtō.

In bringing its vehicles to its first foreign country, Alphabet is trying to project confidence in its technology, especially at a time when companies are pulling back on costly robotaxi projects. General Motors recently announced that it would no longer fund Cruise and would instead pivot to driver-assist technology and personally owned autonomous vehicles.

Several companies have tested their autonomous vehicles in Japan, but the country is a bit of a backwater compared to China and the US. Part of the problem seems to be the country’s robust auto industry is focusing its testing in countries other than its native one. Toyota and Nissan are both seeking to deploy robotaxis in China in collaboration with local operators.

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It’s the final day of Prime Day 2025, and the deals are still live

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It’s the final day of Prime Day 2025, and the deals are still live

Editor’s note: That’s a wrap, folks! As Prime Day 2025 draws to a close, we’ll no longer be updating this article with additional deals and insights. Plenty of great deals remain, however, so be sure to check out all of our Prime Day coverage for anything you may have missed.

There are mere hours left of Amazon’s extended Prime Day extravaganza. And, yeah, we’re a little exhausted, but after days of lightning deals and all-time low prices, these discounts won’t be around for much longer. So, if you’ve been hesitant to jump on these laptop deals before heading back to school, now’s your time to act. Typically, Prime Day is your last opportunity to take advantage of bottom-dollar prices until Black Friday / Cyber Monday, so it may be a while before you see prices plummet on a gadget you’re interested in buying.

Really, there’s an overwhelming amount of Prime Day deals, so to make things easier to navigate, we’ve organized all of our favorites by category below. That will allow you to quickly find exactly what you’re looking for — or even uncover a deal on something you didn’t know you wanted.

Tablet and e-reader deals

Soundbar and Bluetooth speaker deals

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Verge favorites and other miscellaneous deals

Update, July 11th: Added several more deals, including those for Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, Razer’s Kishi Ultra mobile controller, and Amazon’s Fire TV Soundbar Plus.

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Massive scam spreading designed to trick you and steal your money

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Massive scam spreading designed to trick you and steal your money

NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!

Look at the image. That’s not the real Omaha Steaks. It’s from a fake site designed to steal your money.

It’s happening all over the internet right now. You see a great deal on name-brand stuff, a new smartwatch, fancy cookware, maybe some designer jeans, and you click. 

Everything looks real. The logos, the layout, even Apple and Google Pay are options. But it’s a scam, and now your credit card info is out there.

5-MINUTE CLEANUP FOR YOUR PHONE AND COMPUTER

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A massive scam targeting you

Silent Push analysts uncovered thousands of fake websites posing as trusted stores like Apple, Michael Kors, Harbor Freight, REI, Omaha Steaks and more. There’s a massive global scam operation that uses real payment methods on fake checkout pages. Like thousands-of-sites massive.

An image of a fake “Omaha Steaks” website designed to steal your money. (Silent Push)

The twist? The criminals, likely based in China, take your payment and ghost you. No product. No refund. No customer service. Total fake-out.

I’M A TECH PRO AND THESE ARE MY SECRETS TO BETTER FLIGHTS AND LUXURY TRAVEL

They cloned sites

They’re copying everything. Logos, layouts, even the checkout process, so much so that you’d swear you were on the real REI website while buying $10 trail shoes. 

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But there were some sites with mismatched logos and products. A Harbor Freight clone showed Wrangler jeans.

photo illustration of person holding a credit card shopping online

FILE PHOTO: A photo illustration of a person shopping online. (iStock)

Even worse: These scam sites are popping up faster than hosting companies can take them down. Many are still up right now.

IS YOUR PHONE LISTENING TO EVERYTHING YOU SAY? IT’S COMPLICATED

Don’t fall for it 

  • Slow down and read. Misspelled words, weird domain names like “nordstromltems.com” (that’s an L, not an I) or random products are huge red flags.
  • Use virtual cards or a credit card. Not a debit card. You need that fraud protection.
  • Stick to the real URL. Skip the sketchy ads. Always type the URL in yourself.
  • If the deal looks too good, it probably is a scam. Period.
Hacking

FILE PHOTO: A photo illustration of a cybercriminal. (iStock)

Bottom line: If the deal looks like it crawled straight out of your dreams, it’s probably from your nightmares. Slow down before you click “buy.” 

Now you know this is happening. This scam campaign is a big one, and you need to stay sharp. Help save the world and use the icons below to share this know-how with your family and friends.

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  • National radio: Airing on 500+ stations across the US – Find yours or get the free podcast.
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Here are 58 Prime Day deals you can still nab for $50 or less

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Here are 58 Prime Day deals you can still nab for  or less

Amazon Prime Day is an excellent time to save on a wide range of big-ticket items, including 4K TVs, laptops, and the latest pairs of noise-canceling headphones. But if you, like me, are in the market for something more budget-friendly, rest assured that there are plenty of deals to be had for $50 or less. Thankfully, we’ve sifted through hundreds of discounts to find a host of Bluetooth speakers, charging accessories, video games, smart home devices, and other gadgets that come in under that threshold. It’s the final day of Prime Day, which means these deals aren’t going to be available for much longer.

While Prime Day 2025 runs a little longer than previous installments — the event lasts through July 11th this year — these sub-$50 deals might sell out quickly. The good news is retailers such as Walmart and Best Buy are matching Amazon’s pricing in some instances, giving you more places to shop over the next few days. We’ll continue to update this post as Prime Day progresses, but for now, feel free to browse the options below.

Headphone and earbud deals

Other miscellaneous deals

Update, July 11th: Adjusted to reflect current pricing and availability, and to provide a link for readers to our coverage of Prime Day day four.

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