Waymo Co-CEO Tekedra Mawakana Named CES 2027 Keynote Speaker

Waymo co-CEO Tekedra Mawakana will deliver a keynote at CES 2027, the Consumer Technology Association (CTA) announced on September 21. She is scheduled to speak at 6:30 p.m. PST on Tuesday, January 5, 2027, the evening before the show floor opens in Las Vegas. Her talk will set out Waymo’s vision for its robotaxi service as it expands beyond the United States.

What was announced?

The CTA confirmed Mawakana as one of the first keynote speakers for CES 2027, alongside Stellantis CEO Antonio Filosa. Her session will take place in the Palazzo Ballroom at the Venetian, the same room that hosts the show’s main keynotes.

According to the CTA, the keynote will explore how Waymo keeps its safety bar high while it expands internationally and updates its vehicle fleet. Waymo will also exhibit at booth 3741 in the Las Vegas Convention Center’s West Hall throughout the show, which runs January 6–9.

In the announcement, Mawakana said, “Waymo is making fully autonomous transportation a seamless part of everyday life.” CTA executive chair Gary Shapiro said her leadership “reflects innovation that improves lives.”

How big is Waymo now?

The CTA’s release puts Waymo’s scale at more than half a million fully autonomous trips every week. Waymo recently started welcoming public riders in Las Vegas, which the company describes as its 15th U.S. market, so the keynote will effectively take place in one of its service areas.

Waymo also frames its work around road safety, citing the 1.19 million lives lost every year in traffic crashes as the problem it aims to address.

Who is Tekedra Mawakana?

Mawakana leads Waymo as co-CEO. She has a long relationship with the CTA: she sat on the association’s Board of Industry Leaders from 2019 to 2021 and spoke at the CES 2025 Leaders in Technology Dinner. She has been named to the TIME 100 AI list and Forbes’ 50 Over 50 list.

A note on the schedule

Some coverage has listed different times for the talk. Argentine outlet Cultura Geek, for example, placed it on January 6 at 1 p.m. Pacific. However, both the CTA’s Waymo announcement and its later November 2 mobility update list the keynote for Tuesday, January 5, at 6:30 p.m. PST, and PFM Today is following the organiser’s schedule.

Why it matters

Robotaxis have moved from pilot projects to everyday services in a growing number of U.S. cities, and Waymo is the most prominent operator. A CES keynote gives the company a global audience of automakers, suppliers, regulators and investors as it pushes into new markets.

It also fits the CTA’s push to make CES a central event for the car industry. The association says CES 2027 will have more than 350,000 square feet of vehicle technology exhibits, its largest mobility footprint ever, with exhibitors including Waymo, Uber, Ford, BMW, Kia, Bosch and Stellantis. One of the planned conference sessions, on January 7, is titled “Robotaxis and Beyond: AV Business Models Taking Shape.”

The wider mobility industry is also testing how AI can change the way people book trips. Uber, for example, has shared early data on rides booked by AI agents, and Uber is among the CES 2027 mobility exhibitors.

Key details

• Speaker: Tekedra Mawakana, co-CEO, Waymo
• Date and time: Tuesday, January 5, 2027, 6:30 p.m. PST
• Venue: Palazzo Ballroom, the Venetian, Las Vegas
• Booth: 3741, LVCC West Hall
• Show dates: January 6–9, 2027

What happens next

CES media days run on January 4 and 5, and Mawakana’s keynote closes the second media day. The CTA is expected to announce more keynote speakers in the coming weeks.