Image via Australian Financial Review (AFR)
Last updated
Waymo: Geographic Expansion
Waymo (Google-parent Alphabet) is poised to launch robotaxi operations in London shortly after Wayve, already operating in 11 US cities.
The leadership read
Waymo's expansion resets where the leadership need sits in the sector. Standing up a new market rewards operators with local networks and a record of building from scratch. The 12-to-18-month read across EMEA favours country and commercial leadership hired close to the ground.
Market context: MitchelLake's Talent Market Index sits at 104.6 (Hot), down 1.9 on the prior month; EMEA hiring signal is running easing (-2.2pts).
Waymo: 3 signals in the last 90 days; 0.1% of MitchelLake's Americas signal flow; 4 tracked across 101 days.
Market entry — the MitchelLake playbook
When a company expands into a new market, the first leadership hires decide whether it lands. A selection of market entries we've run:
Market entry · Oceania
Square
Executive Search Fintech
Market entry
Dropbox
Executive Search for SaaS
Market entry · Asia
Deliveroo
Executive Search in ASEAN
Market entry · Oceania
SurveyMonkey
Managing Director APAC (first hire in region) / Country Manager
Market entry · Asia
LivePerson
Director ASEAN (first hire in region); also Head of Presales APAC
Market entry · Oceania
Etsy
Managing Director, Australia + Asia (MD APAC)
MitchelLake in this thematic
Also at Waymo →
More signals across EMEA
Geographic Expansion · EMEA
Temu →Temu joined Cross-Border Commerce Europe (CBCommerce) as a member, deepening engagement with European seller community and facilitating e-commerce activity across the EU.
Geographic Expansion · EMEA
Robin Radar Systems →Dutch company Robin Radar Systems, which pivoted from airport bird-detection radar to anti-drone technology, is undergoing very rapid growth and expanding internationally.
Geographic Expansion · EMEA
Ofgem →UK electricity regulator Ofgem is implementing a Datacenter Commitment Fee (£237,500–£712,500 per megawatt) to reduce speculative grid connection applications. Datacenter connection requests have surged from 41 GW to 125 GW in under a year, with datacenters accounting for at least 80 GW of new demand. This regulatory move signals massive infrastructure build-out pressure in the UK for AI and data infrastructure.
Geographic Expansion · EMEA
University of Birmingham →University of Birmingham advancing branch campus plans in Sub-Saharan Africa, specifically Nigeria, as part of UK higher education sector's TNE (Transnational Education) expansion strategy.
Geographic Expansion · EMEA
Greggs →Greggs announced plans to expand from 2,773 to at least 3,500 UK store locations, with 62% of new H1 2026 openings in areas with no existing Greggs within a mile. CEO Roisin Currie stated the chain is targeting underrepresented channels: retail parks, train stations, airports, roadsides, and selective relocations in towns/cities.
Geographic Expansion · EMEA
Kaizen Gaming →Kaizen Gaming has secured full regulatory approval in Spain (general betting, fixed-odds sports betting, advertising licenses via DGOJ) and is actively recruiting a Managing Director, Spain to lead the operational launch of its Betano sportsbook. Spain becomes Kaizen's 11th active European market across 20 regulated global jurisdictions.
Intelligence powered by Autonodal ↗