A woman who requested a self-driving Waymo ride for her daughter was shocked to discover a nervous man hidden in the trunk of the vehicle. A video capturing their strange encounter has gone viral, raising fresh concerns regarding the safety protocols of driverless taxi services.
In a TikTok video, the mother confronts a bewildered man curled up in the trunk of a Waymo in Los Angeles.
“Why are you in the trunk?!” she exclaimed, clearly taken aback by the situation.
“We can’t get out now,” he replied, tapping the back of the seat’s headrest.
“Why are you in there?” the woman pressed again.
“They put me here,” he answered in a matter-of-fact tone.
“Who let you in?” she continued, her concern palpable.
“Those people. Those people,” he said vaguely, despite there being no driver present.
Authorities later reported that the man was taken out of the vehicle by police. In a second TikTok clip, the woman remained on the line with a Waymo representative, who promised to provide a credit for a new ride.
Viewers were alarmed to discover that current robotaxi systems don’t include mechanisms to identify hidden passengers.
“Doesn’t Waymo have like 30 cameras in their cars?” wondered one user.
Another commented, “I literally saw a video where they had someone unexpectedly in the car, and Waymo said they had cameras but didn’t act until he was out, so how did this happen?”
One person cautioned, “Everyone needs to stop using these Waymo cars. There are too many risks involved.”
In a lighthearted tone, another user quipped, “Waymo has to be careful. I’m relieved I met him; he’s okay.”
A Waymo representative stated that the company has procedures to handle situations like this and assured that their team assisted the passenger and ensured the man’s safety.
“We are dedicated to keeping our passengers safe and to earning the trust of the communities we serve. This experience was unacceptable, and we are making changes to address it,” the spokesperson remarked in a statement.
Driverless taxi services are operating in cities like Los Angeles, San Francisco, and even New York City, often leading to various incidents.
For instance, in late October, a Waymo vehicle struck and killed a well-known cat in San Francisco.
Moreover, during anti-ICE protests in Los Angeles this June, protesters ordered Waymo rides specifically to set the vehicles ablaze.
Since Waymo’s introduction to New York in July, the self-driving cars have been reported for making illegal U-turns and navigating oddly through narrow tunnels.
