The fact that Waymos need to use video cameras that are constantly recording their surroundings in order to function means that police have begun to look at them as sources of surveillance footage. In April, we reported that the Los Angeles Police Department had obtained footage from a Waymo while investigating another driver who hit a pedestrian and fled the scene.
Seems like a smart move on their part.
Less surveillance of protesters and fewer torched vehicles. It’s a win-win!
Honestly you wouldn’t want to be caught in one of those things in the middle of a protest or worse, after dark when the serious protesters have gone home and the hooligans start taking over intersections. The machine has no concept of the kind of defensive driving necessary for getting safely home, even if it didn’t provoke attack by having the big-ass cameras on the roof. What you’d want is a human driver from the neighborhood.