Waymo just put its first purpose-built robotaxi into riders’ hands. The pale blue Ojai vans started offering free trips this week in San Francisco, Los Angeles and Phoenix. The moment marks a shift from retrofitted Jaguars to vehicles designed from the ground up for autonomous operation. Built on a Zeekr platform from Chinese parent Geely, the Ojai looks like a compact minivan. Sliding doors. Generous legroom. Three screens for rear passengers. Charging ports. It feels more like a lounge than a taxi. And it runs on Waymo’s sixth-generation driver, a system refined over seven years and 200 million autonomous miles. The Hardware That Makes Scale Possible Previous generations packed 29 cameras. The new setup needs only 13. Four lidar units handle depth. Imaging radar and external audio receivers round out the sensor array. A 17-megapixel imager delivers higher resolution, better dynamic range and stronger low-light performance. Integrated cleaning systems keep the lenses clear.…