\n<\/p>\n
I\u2019m riding in the back of a Waymo that\u2019s autonomously navigating the busy streets of San Francisco with relative ease thanks to 29 external cameras, six radar, and five lidar sensors all feeding into an AI model. For just 15 bucks, I get to experience what feels like a miracle of modern technology, and yet, there\u2019s a nagging thought I can\u2019t shake.<\/p>\n
The music sucks in here.<\/p>\n
Waymo\u2019s music-streaming feature has felt like an aged barnacle attached to a futuristic shell. Until this week, passengers were limited to a few music stations that played lo-fi beats, smooth jazz, K-pop, or other genres they may or may not care for. For those who wanted to listen to something more specific, they had to use another app from Waymo\u2019s parent company Alphabet.<\/p>\n
For iPhone users, that meant downloading the Google Assistant app and configuring it to connect to Spotify. At that point, you had to ask Google Assistant through written or verbal commands to stream certain songs, artists, or playlists on the Waymo. Even if you get to this point \u2014 at which you may be halfway to your destination and have listened to approximately three lo-fi beats \u2014 the service didn\u2019t work reliably.<\/p>\n
As I rode along in a robotaxi full of cutting-edge technology, I was puzzled why Waymo had not figured out a simple way to stream music from my phone into the car\u2019s speakers \u2014 a breakthrough that automakers and audio manufacturers figured out a couple of decades ago.<\/p>\n
That\u2019s why I was pleasantly surprised this week to see that Waymo launched a Spotify integration allowing users to seamlessly link the music-streaming and robotaxi-hailing services. I immediately connected the services and hailed a Waymo to see how it would work.<\/p>\n
Listening to Spotify in a Waymo.<\/span>Image Credits:<\/strong>Maxwell Zeff<\/span><\/p>\n Waymo\u2019s Spotify integration is nothing groundbreaking, but it adds to the user experience. It works seamlessly, which is roughly what I would expect when trying to play music on my car\u2019s speakers in 2025. But riding around in a Waymo, listening to my own playlist or picking up where I left off on a podcast, the back seat of the robotaxi feels more like my own space \u2014 which is increasingly the reason I opt for a Waymo.<\/p>\n Techcrunch event<\/p>\n \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tSan Francisco<\/span> To set it up, open the Waymo app and navigate to the \u201cMusic\u201d section, where you will notice a new offering that lets you connect to Spotify. From there, you can press a button and authorize Spotify to connect to Waymo, albeit while giving the robotaxi provider some access to your listening information.<\/p>\n Image Credits:<\/strong>Maxwell Zeff (screenshot)<\/span><\/p>\n Image Credits:<\/strong>Maxwell Zeff (screenshot)<\/span><\/p>\n I\u2019m sure Apple Music users will soon want to stream their music and podcasts in Waymos as well. Waymo spokesperson Chris Bonelli told TechCrunch the company is always exploring new personalization options but did not clarify when the company might add an Apple Music integration.<\/p>\n Once my Waymo and Spotify accounts were linked, I hailed a Waymo like I usually would and got in. On the Waymo\u2019s touchscreen in the back seat, there\u2019s an option to select Spotify. I tapped it, and the podcast I was listening to on my headphones started playing from the exact spot I left off.<\/p>\n Listening to TechCrunch\u2019s flagship podcast in a waymo. <\/span>Image Credits:<\/strong>Maxwell Zeff<\/span><\/p>\n You can turn \u201cautoplay\u201d on or off in Waymo\u2019s Music settings, and upon entry, the robotaxi will automatically start playing whatever song or podcast you were listening to on Spotify. I liked having it on, but it does feel like it could get you into an odd situation if you\u2019re listening to an intense true crime podcast and then get into a Waymo with work colleagues.<\/p>\n You can also use the Waymo\u2019s touchscreen to select from a variety of customized playlists that Spotify users will be familiar with, such as your \u201cDaylist\u201d or other mixes. However, this selection doesn\u2019t seem to include albums, audiobooks, or podcasts that you\u2019ve recently listened to.<\/p>\n Choosing from different Spotify mixes.<\/span>Image Credits:<\/strong>Maxwell Zeff<\/span><\/p>\n Luckily, your Spotify app now controls the music in the Waymo. You can simply select any song or playlist you want from your smartphone and stream it throughout the vehicle like you would using Apple CarPlay or a bluetooth speaker.<\/p>\n Controlling the Waymo\u2019s tunes with your phone.<\/span>Image Credits:<\/strong>Maxwell Zeff<\/span><\/p>\n In the end, the Spotify integration made my robotaxi feel more personalized; I was even able to tweak the bass, subwoofer, and treble levels in the car\u2019s speakers. That personalization may not be the main attraction for first-time users, but it could keep them coming back \u2014 and a loyal customer base is exactly what Waymo needs.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" I\u2019m riding in the back of a Waymo that\u2019s autonomously navigating the busy streets of San Francisco with relative ease thanks to 29 external cameras, six radar, and five lidar sensors all feeding into an AI model. For just 15 bucks, I get to experience what feels like a miracle of modern technology, and yet,<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":15585,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[52],"tags":[9135,5432,686,1382,9134,9136],"class_list":{"0":"post-15584","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-technology","8":"tag-experience","9":"tag-finally","10":"tag-music","11":"tag-robotaxi","12":"tag-waymo","13":"tag-worthy"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15584","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=15584"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15584\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/15585"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=15584"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=15584"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=15584"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tOctober 27-29, 2025<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n