1. Waymo Waymo’s progress (like that of the autonomous driving space at-large) has been slower than what many once hoped -- those predictions from several years ago about autonomous cars being widely available by 2020 clearly didn't pan out. Nonetheless, Alphabet's self-driving unit is still arguably the technology leader in the field. Over the next several years, Waymo’s driverless taxi services -- for now, available in just a portion of the Phoenix metro area -- could become available to a much larger number of consumers, and its partnerships with automakers such as Volvo, Fiat Chrysler and Nissan-Renault could yield commercial vehicle launches.