Waymo plans to quintuple fleet to 20,000, Semafor reports

Oct 19 (Reuters) - Alphabet's GOOGL.O self-driving unit Waymo plans to expand its fleet five-fold to 20,000 by the end of next year using $5 billion it raised earlier this month, Semafor reported on Monday, citing people familiar with the matter.

• The autonomous ride-hailing service provider, which currently has 4,000 cars, wants to expand it to 8,000 by the end of the year and grow it to 20,000 by the end of next year, Semafor reported

• Waymo did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment outside regular business hours

• Waymo secured a $5 billion loan earlier this month from lenders including PIMCO, Blackstone and Sixth Street, and said it will use the funds to expand its services across the US and internationally

• Waymo operates in 15 US cities and has announced plans to roll out rides in London, Tokyo, Singapore and Canada

• The company closed a $16 billion equity raise earlier this year at a valuation of $126 billion