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Waymo robotaxi calls cops on riders handling loaded AR-style ghost gun — Waymo alerted San Francisco police, then juvenile riders were stopped and arrested
Following a tip-off from robotaxi firm Waymo, San Francisco police conducted a “high-risk vehicle stop” and arrested two juveniles last week. The crime? The Waymo had seen its two passengers handling a loaded AR-style assault rifle. Police who intercepted the car also found “suspected marijuana and mace spray,” reports SFGate.
Fully autonomous taxi cabs like the Waymo in this story are an increasingly common form of transport seen on the world’s roads. With no human driver, these electric vehicles are packed with sensors, cameras, and more, all tied into the software presence that is called the Waymo Driver. To ensure the utmost safety, the sensors also continually monitor passengers. This might typically check if passengers are following the rules regarding minor transgressions like smoking or not wearing a seatbelt. In this case, the cameras recognized something more serious.
From our understanding of the Waymo in-cabin camera monitoring procedure, humans may review footage when something is flagged by the in-car sensors. That may be how the source report can say that the AR was loaded, or that was a later discovery from the police stop that somehow got attributed to the Waymo phoning home.
According to the source report, this incident took place in the 800 block of 40th Avenue, in the Outer Richmond neighborhood, just before 4am on Thursday, September 3. Alongside a loaded ‘ghost gun,’ the police officers found suspected marijuana and mace. The individuals arrested, a male and a female, can’t be identified in the media due to their age. Reports say the specific charges they face are related to illegally possessing a firearm.
This isn’t the first case of a Waymo telling on its passengers. SFGate previously reported on San Mateo police being called after a pair of 15-year-olds were allegedly drinking alcohol and shooting toy ‘gel blaster’ guns in the taxi cabin.
Waymo robotaxis are now well established in San Francisco, Los Angeles, and some other major cities. Earlier in September, the service branched out into San Diego, Denver, and Tampa, Fla. More and more areas in the U.S. and abroad are giving the autonomous service permission to operate.
Mark Tyson is a news editor at Tom's Hardware. He enjoys covering the full breadth of PC tech; from business and semiconductor design to products approaching the edge of reason.
It’s a new world a coming fellas. Ai agents talking to autonomous Police Agents calling cybernetically enhanced Robocops to put the order back in the law.
It’s a new world a coming fellas. Ai agents talking to autonomous Police Agents calling cybernetically enhanced Robocops to put the order back in the law.
It’s a new world a coming fellas. Ai agents talking to autonomous Police Agents calling cybernetically enhanced Robocops to put the order back in the law.
Using “weapons of war” with no sights or stock/brace so they hit everything but their intended “ops” is just their culture, so we can’t judge.
/s
Seriously though, just like they did with ShotSpotter, I bet this technology gets called racist before too long.
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???
You're the first person to bring up race; the article doesn't mention it at all. or did you just start making up things in your head about the race of the people involved and then assumed that was the truth?
