Last week in San Francisco a person jumped on the hood of a Waymo driverless taxi and smashed its windshield. A mob then formed around the car, covered it with paint, broke the windows and finally set the car on fire. The fire department arrived a few minutes later, but by then the car was fully engulfed in flames.
At the moment, the motive of the attack has not been revealed. Waymo representative Sandy Karp said the car was not carrying any passengers at the time. The fire was caused by fireworks thrown into the car.
Tensions are currently high between San Francisco residents and automated vehicle operators. A California agency suspended Waymo’s rival Cruise robot taxi after one of its cars hit a pedestrian and dragged him along last year. Before that, automated taxis had caused chaos in the city by blocking traffic or crashing into a fire engine. The week before last, a Waymo car hit a cyclist.
Source: The Verge
