Hyundai IONIQ 5 Autonomous Vehicles Deal: Hyundai to Supply 50,000 EVs to Waymo by 2028

Hyundai IONIQ 5 autonomous vehicles are reportedly positioned at the core of an extensive supply arrangement, with Hyundai Motor understood to be negotiating the delivery of 50,000 electric vehicles to Waymo by 2028. Valued at approximately USD 2.5 billion, the potential agreement would involve high-volume production of specially configured IONIQ 5 units at Hyundai’s Georgia-based Hyundai Metaplant America facility. Should the contract move forward, it would mark a landmark moment in the scaled commercialization of autonomous driving technology, transitioning from controlled pilots to mass-deployed urban fleets.

Scale and Significance of the Hyundai IONIQ 5 Autonomous Vehicles Deal

At an estimated per-vehicle price of nearly USD 50,000, the proposed procurement of Hyundai IONIQ 5 autonomous vehicles could rank among the most substantial acquisition programs in the history of self driving cars. The addition of 50,000 units would significantly multiply Waymo’s existing robotaxi fleet, which currently comprises roughly 2,500 vehicles.
This magnitude of expansion reflects growing institutional confidence in autonomous mobility as a commercially viable transportation model. Fleet operators are increasingly advancing beyond limited test deployments toward structured, high-capacity rollouts. For Hyundai, the agreement would reinforce the competitiveness of its dedicated EV platform as a scalable base architecture for advanced autonomous integration, combining electrification efficiency with sensor and compute-ready vehicle design.

Strategic Partnership and Waymo Driver Integration

Multi-Year Collaboration Framework

In October 2024, Hyundai and Waymo formalized a multi-year strategic collaboration centered on embedding the sixth-generation Waymo Driver into the IONIQ 5 platform. The partnership is structured to synchronize Hyundai’s electric vehicle engineering capabilities with Waymo’s mature autonomous driving technology stack, enabling factory-level integration rather than post-production retrofitting.
At that stage, Hyundai Motor’s North American CEO, Jose Munoz, indicated that the HMGMA facility was prepared to dedicate substantial production capacity to support Waymo’s operational requirements. This signaled manufacturing readiness for purpose-built autonomous fleet deployment, aligning supply chain planning, software calibration, and validation processes under a unified industrial framework.

Technology Platform Advantages

The IONIQ 5 is engineered on Hyundai’s E GMP platform, a modular architecture developed exclusively for battery electric vehicles. Its 800 volt charging capability supports ultra-fast energy replenishment, enabling battery charging from 10% to 80% in roughly 18 minutes under optimal conditions—an important parameter for minimizing fleet downtime in high-utilization robotaxi operations.

• Dedicated EV architecture engineered for balanced weight distribution, rigidity, and packaging efficiency

• Spacious cabin configuration optimized for passenger comfort and commercial robotaxi applications

• High-voltage electrical system enabling reduced charging intervals and improved operational uptime

Collectively, these engineering attributes position Hyundai IONIQ 5 autonomous vehicles as technically suited for continuous-duty fleet cycles, where charging speed, interior ergonomics, and structural stability directly influence total cost of ownership and service reliability.

Waymo Expansion Plans and Fleet Evolution

Waymo recently secured USD 16 billion in funding at a valuation of USD 126 billion, capital earmarked for accelerated geographic scaling. The company plans to extend operations into more than 20 additional cities in 2026, including inaugural international deployments in Tokyo and London.
Currently, Waymo’s operational fleet is composed primarily of approximately 2,500 vehicles, largely derived from the discontinued Jaguar I-PACE platform. As expansion progresses, the remaining I-PACEs will operate alongside the Zeekr-built “Ojai” purpose-designed robotaxi van and the Hyundai IONIQ 5. This multi-platform strategy reflects a deliberate diversification of hardware architectures to support different urban use cases and regulatory environments.
If the reported EV fleet deal materializes, Hyundai IONIQ 5 autonomous vehicles are expected to become a foundational element of Waymo expansion, enabling the transition of autonomous driving technology from limited demonstration fleets to widely deployed, multi-continent urban mobility networks.