Proponents of self-driving cars say they’ll remove hassle from our lives and change our society for the better. Detractors cite them as a dangerous or frustrating menace that should be removed from the roads. Waymo in particular has seen its autonomous vehicles attacked by an irate public before. Now, it seems the company’s cars are a target for vandals.
The video comes to us from one @Justinboldaji on Twitter. It appears to have been originally posted on Tiktok by a user named @stunseed415, however, that account now appears blank. The footage shows a Waymo self-driving vehicle stuck in the center of a road in San Francisco. The car is swarmed by graffiti artists, who deface the car with what appear to be paint markers, all while a rider sits inside holding their puppy.
As reported by Futurism, the incident was not a one-off incident. Authorities told the outlet that three separate incidents of vandalism occurred in the early evening of September 21, centered around the Mission District of San Francisco. The incident pictured below appears to have happened on 18th Street, with the group targeting one of Waymo’s autonomous Jaguar I-Pace vehicles.
This is the funniest thing I’ve ever seen pic.twitter.com/EsIzK4UXba
— Justin????Boldaji (@justinboldaji) September 24, 2024
It’s not easy to identify those drawing on the vehicle, as the camera avoids showing their faces. However, it’s likely that Waymo has footage of the matter given the data and video it collects from its vehicle fleet. The Autopian has contacted Waymo for more information on the incident.
It’s not clear what might have inspired the group to vandalize the robot taxi, other than for the sheer likelihood of gaining attention by marking a highly-unique target. Waymo’s vehicles, along with those from other self-driving projects, have drawn some negative attention at times for both perceived and real safety risks, noise, and traffic jams. However, if this was a protest, the graffiti crew gave no obvious indication that this was the case.
Given the vehicles are regularly out and about in San Francisco, and easy to spot, one suspects the vehicles were found on an opportunistic basis. Official figures have about 300 Waymo driverless vehicles on the street in San Francisco, with around 400 others deployed across Los Angeles, Austin, and Phoenix.
Look around online, though, and you’ll find that this isn’t unique. There are numerous other incidents dating back some time. On Twitter, there are photos of other vandalized Waymo cars allegedly dating back to January.
Going back further, ABC15 Arizona covered a spate of attacks on Waymo’s vans all the way back in 2019, with some vehicles seeing rocks thrown through windows. Last year also saw a number of incidents in San Francisco, where cones were placed on the hoods of Cruise and Waymo vehicles to stop them in their tracks.
All the human drivers and their cars got through Chinatown unblemished, AFAIK.
Empty robot stalls amid skaters celebrating with fireworks, what could go wrong?
Stalled/stopped/immobilized Waymo's robots have been tagged and/or damaged repeatedly in SF, eg APAC and ~month ago. https://t.co/lKG9DGe8st pic.twitter.com/nMCuSsRsqh
— John Berry (aniccia.bsky.social) (@aniccia) February 21, 2024
Driverless cars are kind of an easy target. They’re not designed to deal with vandals intentionally trying to damage them.
happening NOW in SF. Waymo car vandalized & lit on fire ????@sfchronicle pic.twitter.com/OEZYFiy6mv
— Michael Vandi (@michael_vandi) February 11, 2024
We saw ugly scenes earlier as a mob destroyed a Waymo vehicle in SF’s Chinatown back in February. This more recent incident was more creatively themed, but still likely to upset Waymo to a great degree.
It’s worth noting that these self-driving vehicles are kind of a soft target. If a group of people want to graffiti a regular taxi, they could certainly use similar techniques of surrounding the vehicle and going at it with paint and markers. However, they’re likely to get yelled at by an irate driver at the least, and potentially run over if the driver reacts in an altogether more negative way. When it comes to a self-driving vehicle, though, it’s just going to sit there while this nonsense happens.
Some will laugh at yet another robot taxi being made to look the fool. Others will decry the negative attitude shown towards the new technology. In any case, self-driving or not, we can all agree that it’s no fun being stuck in a cab while interlopers block your way and scribble on the windows. Ain’t nobody got time for that.
Update (Sept 26, 2024 3:22 ET): Waymo has responded to The Autopian’s request for comment. From a Waymo spokesperson:
A fully autonomous Waymo vehicle was transporting a rider in San Francisco when a group of pedestrians blocked and tagged the vehicle. We connected with the rider to ensure their well-being and promptly alerted local authorities who are investigating.
Though these events are exceedingly rare over the hundreds of thousands of trips we provide each month, we take them very seriously and work with law enforcement if they occur. The trust and safety of the community is our top priority, both for people who choose to ride with us and with whom we share the streets.
Image credits: @justinboldaji via Twitter screenshot
As to the “Why” – and, to be clear, I’m not taking either side here, take this as a discourse/reflection of popular sentiment: broadly, culturally, these things are a stand-in for the tech companies in SF, and an awful lot of people in the bay feel like the tech companies take from SF without giving back.
There’s a long history of this kind of thing – the Google & tech co busses were a private company causing disruptions to the public with no public benefit, the scooter companies dumped tons of soon-to-be-junk on the sidewalk and then refused to clean it up, and the self-driving cars are several-ton pieces of optimistically beta hardware being tested on public streets. The sentiment is that the techies do everything they can to avoid contributing to the city and then complain that the city is awful, and meanwhile the rest of the city gets higher rent, lower wages, crowded streets, the detritus of failed venture-backed companies as sidewalk junk, and a bunch of self-righteous nerds talking shit about a place they’re actively making worse.
So, yeah, the cars are getting tagged. That’s what happens when you piss a bunch of people off for a decade, talk a bunch of shit about them, and then leave your property on their front step.
(I’ll note they don’t seem to be trying to run the cars in Oakland, so there’s at least someone with some sort of social awareness at Waymo.)
Well, they’re just kind of tiny subway cars that don’t use tracks. So a legit target for graffiti and bombing.
This is why we need to teach proper cursive in schools again. I can’t read a single thing they wrote on that car.
They’re writing their names. Also, easy legibility is not the main goal of bombing. Style and the frequency level with which you do it are more important.
Lewin getting angry at real world problems, as usual.
Soutien aux familles des vitrines
La lunette arrière est traumatisée à l’idée de se faire défoncer depuis…
How do we know vandals did this because there’s no cab driver to deal with? I didn’t see that explained, but maybe it’s in the videos.
Had I been the rider…
“Hey, you missed a spot!”.
Look if tech bros want to race headlong into a dystopia then they gotta deal with all aspects. We’re in no position to feel entitled to some shiny clean future, we’re headed towards Cyberpunk, not Star Trek. That means more graffiti on advanced tech that represents the class divisions, rusty Cybertrucks, old ICE vehicles with chunky retrofit hybrid systems on the exterior, violent organ and limb repossession, extraterrestrial diseases, etc.
We’ve got to get through the Bell Riots first.
We just did, earlier this month.
Nice try but I’m still not convinced it’s a replacement for the subway.
will it ever be unless they hire a homeless fella who smells of pee and booze to sit next to you while playing crying baby noises over the speakers?
It’s pretty culturally insensitive to talk so negatively about the Vandals. Imagine being a peaceful villager and all of a sudden people use the name of your tribe as a slur because some of the members sacked Rome for 14 days in the year 455.
lol. Sounds like a GOP talking point regarding a tour of the Capitol?
Hahaha yeah. Those Vandals were just peacefully protesting the vice-emperor and senate certifying a phony election
Don’t forget the “stolen goats”…
Bronze Age workers: “Stop the Steel!”
You absolutely win
The Vandals did not sack Rome. Clearly, they revere it.
Yeah, it’s right up there with scotch tape.
Well as ethnic slurs go it’s pretty innocuous.
Scotch eggs on the other hand are lethal but yummy.
Now I’m hungry. Dang.
“Not all Vandals”
It’s kind of like being on an amusement park ride. You can’t really do anything about it, so stay in your seat until you get to the end. It’s not like one person stood in front of the car while another approached with a gun, which would be my biggest worry.
Good thing they were not Haitians.
That dog would have become the main ingredient for Taco Tuesday.
Sorry, I can’t help it…
Say stupid shit, get mocked forever!)
With all due respect:
Fuck off with your racist joke. You deserve more than being mocked for peddling that shit – this nasty conspiracy has real world consequences.
My heart bleeds for you too.
Maybe grow a pair, or a sense of perspective.
Either one will work.
Not a racist joke Luca. A fucking reality. That Orange guy is a racist turd, please direct your false outrage his way. JFC.
And what color is the sky in your fucked up world?
Stupid edit is not working.
Sorry man.
But I don’t believe a word of the GOP or Trump lies.
so I don’t get why you seemed so outraged.
????
I beg your forgiveness for not indicating my sarcasm dude.
Most here are well aware, and expecting it. my bad.
The guy was pretty calm about it.
“I sense injuries. The data could be called pain.” – a T-101
This is wrong, I mean clearly so, right? There’s no way we should condone this practice, I guess. But I sorta do.
Arm the taxis, tangle nets, weighted bolos, robotic dogs, what could go wrong?
I’ve seens this episode of Dark Mirror.
Yes, isn’t it ironic.
We have one that drives around our parking lot on a regular occasion. I have taken to messing with it for multiple reasons. As Operations Manager, I need to be on the look out for unauthorized people/vehicles on campus, and yes, I question anyone I see who I don’t know, doesn’t look like they are supposed to be here or are lost. Secondly, my scope includes processes and material controlled by Homeland, the EPA, DOT and local regulations and a vast amount of IP, having a roaming data collection device loose on campus is no bueno. Finally, I find it annoying that Waymo sees fit to allow this vehicle to just roam around on private property. They need to respect industries enough (if they want the business) to map and understand the appropriate location for pickup and drop off of customers.
Lastly and this is purely personal, I want to fuck with the robots.
I have freaked it out on a couple of occasions, one time when I stood in front of it and made it face the choice of the sidewalk or me, it stopped and just waited. I would have liked to wait it out but I had things to do. My goal is to be ready with two sets of cones, basically trapping the car between them to see what happens.
You can put one cone on its hood, I think that still works.
Or… I’ve always wondered what it would do if you put a “do not enter” sign on a stick on its hood. So, no matter what direction it turned it saw a “do not enter” sign. You can also repeat that test with a stop sign and a 55mph speed limit sign. See what happens.
In one final test, you could make a closed circuit of “one way” and “no left turn/one way” signs so it had no choice but to drive in a circle around the parking lot.
Edit: maybe combine that last one with the 55mph sign on the hood. See if it turns into a 1-car nascar race.
I like the way you think!
Maybe spray paint the cameras? That could be interesting.
Better yet, spray them with Pam cooking spray.
“In one final test, you could make a closed circuit of “one way” and “no left turn/one way” signs so it had no choice but to drive in a circle around the parking lot. “
That sounds like the long term parking at Newark airport.
Actually the entire state of New Jersey come to think of it.
Bad you, be careful, Lewin is gonna have nightmares thinking about it.
Oh please, can someone do this. For science.
“Ah, a herring sandwich! I like herring sandwiches.”
I wouldn’t stand in front of one. The robots are one screwed up line of code away from just running you down.
The level of nonchalance from the rider is seriously impressive. He just could not possibly care less.
It really is the definition of “not my circus, not my monkeys”. The graffiti crew even had the courtesy of working quickly, I bet the riders ride time wasn’t even impacted.
My understanding of San Francisco is that this is FAR from the weirdest thing a resident has ever seen. Probably not even the weirdest thing they’ve seen THAT DAY.
It’s not the weirdness that is the problem though..
There’s this guy who gives speeches that has informed me that SF is a dystopian (not his word) hellhole (his word) that was “completely destroyed” by (depending on the stars I guess) Gavin Newsom, Nancy Pelosi or Kamala Harris. The gangs own the streets and you’re only allowed 32 gallons of water per week. All these things must be true because he said it and I have absolutely no way to independently verify information.
He seems to have correctly evaluated that engaging wouldn’t improve his day in any way.
But the dog was giving them the finger…