
Waymo recalled 1,200 robotaxis after repeated crashes with road barriers, filings show
Waymo, the autonomous vehicle subsidiary of Alphabet, recalled more than 1,200 self-driving vehicles late last year following a series of minor collisions with stationary barriers such as gates and chains, according to regulatory filings made public this week.
The move came amid an ongoing federal investigation into the safety of its automated driving system.
The recall affected 1,212 vehicles equipped with Waymo's fifth-generation self-driving software and stemmed from at least 16 reported low-speed incidents between 2022 and late 2024.
According to filings with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, none of the collisions resulted in injuries.
'The issue has been addressed in our latest ADS software, which has been deployed across the fleet,' the company said in a statement.
As of December, Waymo completed the rollout of its sixth-generation software to its entire fleet.
The federal agency launched a preliminary investigation into Waymo's system in May 2024 after receiving reports of vehicles striking visible objects that 'a competent driver would be expected to avoid.'
The agency said its review included 22 such incidents, and the inquiry remains open.
'Waymo has updated the ADS software, free of charge,' the recall notice said. 'All affected vehicles were repaired by December 26, 2024.'
The company said the filings were made public 'to fulfill relevant regulatory reporting obligations.'
The company currently operates more than 1,500 autonomous vehicles in San Francisco, Phoenix, Los Angeles and Austin.
'Waymo provides more than 250,000 paid trips every week in some of the most challenging driving environments in the U.S.,' spokesperson Ethan Teicher said in a statement. 'Our record of reducing injuries over tens of millions of fully autonomous miles driven shows our technology is making roads safer.'
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Time Magazine
22 minutes ago
- Time Magazine
Why Waymo's Self-Driving Cars Became a Target of Protesters in Los Angeles
As protesters and police clash across Los Angeles and beyond, a striking image from the mayhem has been that of graffiti-strewn white cars engulfed in flames. But these aren't ordinary cars. They've got sensors protruding from the top and sides—and, critically, they've got no drivers. Waymo, a robotaxi company, found itself at the center of the demonstrations against the Trump Administration's Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids after a group of protesters over the weekend, according to the Los Angeles Times, approached a parked row of the autonomous vehicles and smashed their windows, slashed their tires, spray-painted them with anti-ICE slogans, and set them on fire. While eye-catching, the trend is also extremely dangerous. Electric vehicles, like those in Waymo's fleet, have lithium-ion batteries, and in a post on X, the L.A. Police Department warned: 'Burning lithium-ion batteries release toxic gases, including hydrogen fluoride, posing risks to responders and those nearby.' According to Scientific American, first responders exposed to the fumes of burnt lithium-ion batteries without protection historically 'have developed throat burns and breathing difficulties upon arriving,' and, depending on the hydrogen fluoride levels, individuals can start coughing up blood within minutes of exposure. At least six Waymo vehicles across the county have reportedly been the target of vandalism, resulting in the company temporarily suspending operations in the area 'out of an abundance of caution.' California Gov. Gavin Newsom and Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass have condemned the violence and destruction, which Newsom attributed to 'insurgent groups' and 'anarchists' who have infiltrated otherwise peaceful protests. President Donald Trump, who mobilized the National Guard to respond to the situation, has called the demonstrators ' troublemakers ' and ' paid insurrectionists.' Here's what to know. What is Waymo? Waymo is a subsidiary of Alphabet, Google's parent company, and grew out of the Google Self-Driving Car project that began in 2009. It launched its robotaxi business in 2020 in limited markets, which grew to include Los Angeles in 2024. While the company says its mission 'is to be the world's most trusted driver,' a national survey earlier this year found that '6 in 10 U.S. drivers still report being afraid to ride in a self-driving vehicle' while the proportion of people enthusiastic about the development of the technology has actually decreased from 18% in 2022 to 13% in 2025. Waymo vehicles were involved in 696 accidents across the U.S. between 2021 and 2024, or about one accident every other day. MKP Law Group, a Los-Angeles based firm that represents clients involved in accidents, acknowledged in a blog post that this statistic 'is not necessarily indicative of Waymo causing those accidents, as some may have been the fault of the other involved drivers.' Studies show that self-driving technology is likely safer than most human drivers. Waymo has also reportedly annoyed some people, including those who find self-driving vehicles to be an eyesore as well as locals where the vehicles routinely get stuck. Neighbors near a Waymo charging station in Santa Monica have complained about noise pollution caused by the driverless vehicles honking at each other in the parking lot. Waymo vehicles as well as other self-driving cars have previously been the target of vandals, particularly in California, where Waymo is headquartered. In January, a Waymo car was torn apart in Los Angeles. In February 2024, another Waymo car was smashed and set ablaze in San Francisco. And in July 2024, a man was charged with slashing the tires of 17 Waymo cars in San Francisco. Why is Waymo being targeted in the L.A. protests? Several potential explanations have emerged for why Waymo vehicles were targeted during the protests in Los Angeles. The Wall Street Journal reported that part of the reason the cars were vandalized was to obstruct traffic—a traditional, albeit controversial, protest tactic. Some social media users have suggested that self-driving vehicles in particular have become a new target because they are seen by protesters as ' part of the police surveillance state.' Waymo's cars are equipped with cameras that provide a 360-degree view of their surroundings, a tool that has been tapped by law enforcement, according to reports. Independent tech news site 404 Media reported in April that the Los Angeles Police Department obtained footage from a Waymo driverless car to use as part of an investigation into an unrelated hit-and-run. And Bloomberg reported in 2023 that police have increasingly relied on self-driving cars and their cameras for video evidence. Chris Gilliard, a fellow at the Social Science Research Council, told Bloomberg that self-driving vehicles are 'essentially surveillance cameras on wheels,' adding: 'We're supposed to be able to go about our business in our day-to-day lives without being surveilled unless we are suspected of a crime, and each little bit of this technology strips away that ability.' Waymo told Bloomberg at the time that it 'carefully' reviews every request from police 'to make sure it satisfies applicable laws and has a valid legal process.' Some activists have also suggested that the burning of Waymo vehicles should garner less sympathy from onlookers. 'There are people on here saying it's violent and domestic terrorism to set a Waymo car on fire,' racial justice organizer Samuel Sinyangwe posted on X. 'A robot car? Are you going to demand justice for the robot dogs next? But not the human beings repeatedly shot with rubber bullets in the street? What kind of politics is this?' 'There is no human element to Waymo,' climate and labor organizer Elise Joshi similarly posted on X. 'It's expensive and bought-out politicians are using it as an excuse to defund public transit. I pray on Waymo's downfall.'
Yahoo
3 hours ago
- Yahoo
What is a Waymo car?
( — Waymo vehicles have been in headlines over the last few days after anti-immigration enforcement protestors set some of them on fire in Los Angeles. But what are they? A Waymo car is a fully autonomous, self-driving vehicle operated by the company Waymo, a Google subsidiary. It operates on a rideshare service application called Waymo One, which offers on-demand, self-driving transportation in select cities, according to How does ICE know who to deport? Waymo began in 2009 in San Francisco as an experiment and went on in 2016 to become a fully-operational robotaxi service in some major cities. 'The Waymo Driver is the embodiment of fully autonomous technology that is always in control from pickup to destination,' the company said on its website. 'Passengers don't even need to know how to drive. They can sit in the back seat, relax, and enjoy the ride with the Waymo Driver getting them to their destination safely.' Waymo cars are currently available in Phoenix, AZ, San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Austin, TX, according to its website. They are reportedly coming soon to Atlanta, GA, and Miami, FL. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
6 hours ago
- Yahoo
At least 6 Waymo autonomous vehicles have been vandalized amid anti-ICE protests in Los Angeles
At least six Waymo self-driving cars have been damaged by the violence taking place in Los Angeles in recent days amid protests against federal immigration raids, according to a representative for the company. The autonomous vehicles, as well as some Lime electric scooters, have been vandalized, and in some cases set on fire and completely destroyed. Videos of people climbing the Waymo robotaxis and bashing in the windshields, as well as clips of Waymo cars engulfed in flames, were shared widely online, quickly becoming key imagery of the protests in downtown Los Angeles. The Los Angeles Police Department warned people on Sunday to steer clear of the area, due to the risk of toxin exposure from electric batteries catching on fire. All of the self-driving taxis deployed by Waymo, which is owned by Alphabet, are electric. 'Burning lithium-ion batteries release toxic gases, including hydrogen fluoride, posing risks to responders and those nearby,' the department warned in a social media post. No Waymo riders or employees were harmed during the incidents, and passengers had exited vehicles before they were vandalized, according to a Waymo spokesman. The company stopped service downtown on Monday as the protests continued, though Waymo continued to operate in the broader Los Angeles region. 'Out of an abundance of caution given the recent activity, we removed vehicles from Downtown Los Angeles and will not be serving that specific area of LA at the moment,' a Waymo spokesman said in a statement, noting that the company is working with the police department and other authorities to assess the situation. It's not clear whether protesters decided to specifically target the Waymo cars or the Lime scooters, and it's possible that the vehicles and scooters were in an unfortunate place as the protests escalated. The Los Angeles Department referred all questions to Waymo and said it did not know if any incident reports had been filed at this time. Waymo declined to comment on the total estimated damage, and Lime declined to comment. Analysts have estimated that the Waymo Jaguar I-Pace SUVs, which are equipped with radar and lidar equipment, cost between $150,000 to $200,000 each. In San Francisco, where anti-ICE protests have also been ongoing, there was another isolated instance of a Waymo being vandalized, according to the company. Self-driving vehicles have periodically become the targets of vandals, with instances of tire slashing or people throwing fireworks into the vehicles. A couple years ago, a man with a hatchet chased several self-driving Cruise taxis around the streets of San Francisco—sometimes when there were passengers inside. President Donald Trump ordered the National Guard to intervene in Los Angeles on Saturday. Protesters clashed with police, dumpsters were vandalized, and the Los Angeles Police Department shared videos on social media of a store being looted. By Monday, the protests had calmed, though there was still a large group of protestors marching downtown. Waymo, which operates in San Francisco, Phoenix, Los Angeles, and Austin, and is planning to launch in Austin and Miami, is currently the only robotaxi company in the U.S. offering commercial operations in several different markets. Tesla is preparing to launch a robotaxi service in Austin this month, although the rollout will be very limited with just 10 to 20 vehicles at first. Waymo said it had surpassed 10 million paid rides near the end of May. This story was originally featured on