Hyundai to Build Tens of Thousands of Ioniq 5s for Waymo in Georgia

Hyundai Motor CEO Jose Muñoz said the automaker will mass-produce tens of thousands of Ioniq 5 robotaxis for Waymo at Hyundai Motor Group Metaplant America in Georgia, with the first vehicles destined for more than testing due in the fourth quarter of 2026.

Sam Okonkwo, Robotaxi · Sept. 17, 2026 · 5-6 min

KED Global

SAN JOSE - Hyundai Motor CEO Jose Muñoz said the automaker will mass-produce tens of thousands of Ioniq 5 robotaxis for Waymo at Hyundai Motor Group Metaplant America in Georgia, with the first vehicles destined for more than testing due in the fourth quarter of 2026.

Speaking Sept. 17 at the Hyundai Motor Group Tech Talent Forum here, Muñoz framed robotaxi supply as a major new outlet for Hyundai's U.S. electric-vehicle capacity as retail EV demand slows, according to reporting by DigitalToday and Aju Press. KED Global separately said mass production at the Georgia complex could begin as early as October. Muñoz said the company will produce tens of thousands of Waymo robotaxis based on the Ioniq 5 at the Metaplant starting in Q4, Aju Press reported.

The vehicles are to leave the factory with Waymo's sixth-generation Driver hardware already integrated. That is a different path from Waymo's Ojai vans, which DigitalToday and UA.NEWS (citing InsideEVs) say are fitted with the same sixth-generation stack at Waymo's Arizona facility after the base vehicles arrive. Hyundai and Waymo announced the multi-year Ioniq 5 partnership in October 2024, saying the Georgia-built SUVs would join the Waymo One fleet over time.

Muñoz said robotaxi manufacturing is already profitable for Hyundai and that the Waymo Ioniq 5 line is growing into a business division, DigitalToday reported. The company has adjusted the Savannah-area plant mix, reducing the share of retail EV production, lifting hybrids, and diverting EV capacity toward robotaxi volumes. Hyundai also builds Ioniq 5s for its Motional autonomous unit and has left open the possibility of foundry customers beyond Waymo.

Sam Okonkwo, Robotaxi. Sam Okonkwo is a senior correspondent covering robotaxis, fleet ops, and paid driverless service. Previously reported transport tech for trade titles; based in Austin.