The Unsettling Reason Waymo Is Recalling Robotaxis

Waymo, the self-driving car company owned by Google parent Alphabet, has been embroiled in controversy numerous times since its first robotaxi service hit the road in 2018. In cities where the cars have been rolled out, residents complain of nightmarish gridlock and disruptive robotic beeping that persists through day and night. Waymo cars have also been subjected to vandalism on several occasions, reflecting a society that clearly isn't comfortable with the idea of robots piloting vehicles, irrespective of whether AI is good or bad. Waymo's latest move will surely stoke these fears further, as this month, the company announced a recall of 3,067 of its robotaxis due to faulty software. The reason behind the recall is particularly unsettling, stemming from several close calls between Waymos and school buses.

On December third, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration opened an investigation into Waymo due to their robotaxis disobeying traffic laws around school buses. In all U.S. states, it is illegal to pass a school bus that is stopped with its stop sign arm out and lights flashing, but Waymo cars have done exactly that on 20 occasions in the Austin, Texas area, with six more incidents reported from Atlanta. On at least one of these occasions, the robotaxi drove past a bus while a student was crossing the street. Fortunately, the student was not hit, but the near miss has people understandably on edge. Waymo claims to have identified a software flaw behind these incidents, but it will take more than that to assuage fears over self-driving cars.

Waymo has been in the works for more than a decade, originating as a side project of Google before it was made its own company under Alphabet. Google has been at the forefront of AI, and when plans for electric driverless cars were first announced, there was much excitement over their potential for convenience as well as reducing car pollutants. However, Alphabet has never before dealt with the kind of risk factor that self-driving cars present. Thus far, nobody has been directly killed by a Waymo vehicle, but the robotaxis have on multiple occasions been involved in fatal multi-vehicle crashes, and have killed a number of pet dogs and cats. A day before the NHTSA opened its investigation into Waymo, one of the company's robotaxis in Los Angeles, drove through an active crime scene where police had guns drawn.

Critical eyes are now turning to Waymo's recent software updates, intended to make the cars drive more confidently. This has led to increasingly concerning violations of road laws, from running red lights to the recent frightening incidents around school buses. The company claimed to have identified a software issue behind the dangerous errors last month, but that didn't stop a recall from going into place. The NHTSA has ordered Waymo to respond to its inquiries about the school bus incidents in Austin by January 20, a date that will prove vital if the company is to earn the public's trust.