No one was in Waymo’s driverless taxi as it was surrounded and set on fire in San Francisco’s Chinatown.

A person jumped on the hood of a Waymo driverless taxi and smashed its windshield in San Francisco’s Chinatown last night around 9PM PT, generating applause before a crowd formed around the car and covered it in spray paint, breaking its windows, and ultimately set it on fire.

The fire takes place against the backdrop of simmering tension between San Francisco residents and automated vehicle operators. The California DMV suspended Waymo rival Cruise’s robotaxi operations after one of its cars struck and dragged a pedestrian last year, and prior to that, automated taxis had caused chaos in the city, blocking traffic or crashing into a fire truck. Just last week, a Waymo car struck a cyclist who had reportedly been following behind a truck turning across its path.

  • @redtea@lemmygrad.ml
    hexbear
    51
    4 months ago

    I can't believe there's an actual place where these driverless death machines have been let loose on the public.

  • CarbonScored [any]
    hexbear
    48
    edit-2
    4 months ago

    This is the company that three years ago, the big Youtube channel Veritasium did a huge sponsored video on. He made statements during (and afterwards outside the video) essentially implying anyone against driverless cars was an objective idiot.

  • Bloobish [comrade/them]
    hexbear
    44
    4 months ago

    elmofire

    Also

    The fire takes place against the backdrop of simmering tension between San Francisco residents and automated vehicle operators. The California DMV suspended Waymo rival Cruise’s robotaxi operations after one of its cars struck and dragged a pedestrian last year, and prior to that, automated taxis had caused chaos in the city, blocking traffic or crashing into a fire truck.

    Wow so this was legit community defense against tech bro bullshit, love to see that people won't allow themselves to be used like test driving manikins by sociopaths!

  • 420blazeit69 [he/him]
    hexbear
    41
    edit-2
    4 months ago

    A great action:

    1. Documented public safety issue.
    2. Prominent example of "if I did this shit (reckless driving) I'd get arrested but it's a big company so it's allowed."
    3. No material benefit to the participants, which cuts down on openings for opportunists/accusations of opportunism.
    4. No worker is directly involved on the receiving end.
    5. Accurately identified a target of real public ire.
    6. Minimal inconvenience to ordinary people.
  • @SSJ2Marx
    hexbear
    29
    4 months ago

    This is great but it would be even more great if they took their rage out on the politicians who greenlit testing this bullshit on public roads to begin with.

    • Evilphd666 [he/him, comrade/them]
      hexbear
      9
      4 months ago

      started-blasting This is infinitely more intersting than that sleep dust empty void husk equivalent of watching already dried paint insult of a film.

      • Frank [he/him, he/him]
        hexbear
        1
        4 months ago

        I recently learned that Lynch really didn't like the final version of his Dune and I really wish I could see what he would have come up with if he'd been able to do more.

        Also, I want to see Michael Kirkbride's Dune.

  • regul [any]
    hexbear
    22
    4 months ago

    Normally when SF wins or loses a national sports championship, it's a Muni bus, so I consider this a huge improvement.