British tech startup Wayve has been given a series of private hire licences for its self-driving Ford Mustang Mach-E taxis to operate around London. 

The company has partnered with private hire firm Uber to offer rides in the cars, completing requirements for vehicle, operator and driver to be registered with Transport for London for private hire operations. 

The companies have said that more than 100,000 Londoners have already signed up to register their interest in a ride in the cars – those customers will get access to rides in the cars later this year, and Wayve will use their feedback to fine-tune the service. 

The licences have been given to the cars to operate as part of the Department for Transport’s Autonomous Vehicle Trialling Code of Practice pilot scheme to see how the tech will work in practice, with passenger rides in self-driving open to paying members of the public for the first time. 

The practical scheme sits alongside a consultation that aims to get the public's views on driverless cars before a wider rollout is considered. 

Those lucky enough to get themselves into one of the Wayve self-driving Fords will have to share the car with a licence TfL private hire driver, who will oversee the operation of the car and make sure that the ride remains compliant with London’s taxi rules, taking control of the car if necessary. 

Further approval from the government will be needed before the cars can be run on UK streets without a safety driver. 

Uber’s head of autonomous mobility operations, Annie Duvnjak, described the licences as a “key milestone” and said that the response from Londoners had been “incredible”. 

The Wayve cars use an in-house developed AI Driver set-up that uses surround cameras and radar to help the car get around. 

Rather than using detailed HD maps built up over time, the company says that its cars can be used in cities with little to no experience of the roads, reacting to the immediate environment. 

Wayve has beaten rival firm Waymo to get the licences for operating self-driving taxis. Waymo is also expected to be granted permission by TfL to take part in the trials, with Chinese tech firm Baidu and Lyft also working together to test the tech in London. 

Ginny Buckley was recently taken for a ride around Tokyo in a self-driving Nissan Ariya and enjoyed the experience more than she thought she would...