Mastodon MigrationNews: Waymo robot taxis fail to manage SF power outage causing widespread gridlock
https://missionlocal.org/2025/12/sf-waymo-halts-service-blackout/
The question we should be asking is what are the penalties for creating such a citywide menace?
It's early days, and there will certainly be some detailed analysis, but at this point it seems clear that these cars are too stupid to deal with widespread traffic lights being out. Unlike human drivers they do not know how to adapt to a non-standard situation. As a result we now have a situation where our public infrastructure is completely clogged in the event of a power outage. Is this acceptable? What dangers does this create? What happens when there are even more of them?
What if the blackout had been caused by a big earthquake, and a big fire ensued, and emergency services were unable to get anywhere because all the major intersections are clogged with brain dead Waymos.
The way to phrase the issue to city managers is: Are you comfortable with all emergency services being blocked and rendered useless in the event of a major disaster? Has this citywide robot taxi gridlock been factored into your emergency disaster response plans?
DP0@mastodonmigration Below you'll see the only thing on earth that could stop AI's ascension (which is why Amazon incentivises you to use Alexa instead). 🤪
Sarah Sammis@mastodonmigration They would probably move them with a bulldozer like was done in L.A. during the fires.
(This is not an endorsement of robo-taxis)
BoloMKXXVIII@mastodonmigration They would have to have a brain to be "brain dead." That is actually the problem.
Maria Langer | 📝🛥️💎@mastodonmigration @rpmik I honestly don't know why this tech is allowed.
🔶Mark Nicoll 3.5%🏴🇬🇧🇪🇺🇺🇳@mlanger @mastodonmigration @rpmik
Simple. They are allowed because the people who make the decisions are profiting from it.
Simple. They are allowed because the people who make the decisions are profiting from it.
Ted@mlanger
Have you seen the human drivers in SF?
The real solution is better transit. We're using fancy tech to fix a solved problem. But for whatever reason America and especially California is somewhat anti public transit. (LA is at least improving there)
As an SF resident, these are much better than a lot of human drivers I encounter both as a pedestrian and as an occasional driver. (Not better than a good driver, better than bad drivers)
But I agree this failure mode is very not ok.
Phogna Bologna@mastodonmigration it seems crazy to rely on AI systems trying to think for themselves instead of, as we move toward an autonomous driving future (including buses and cargo), building out infrastructure that communicates back and forth with these vehicles in a "dumber" more reliable system.
Jesse McClure 
@bransonturner @mastodonmigration
Exactly this. Trying to make computers think like humans is silly. In the early days I assumed self-driving cars would *need* to be networked and communicate with each other. They could coordinate their movements, their speed, etc, and plan routes mutually to truly optimize everyone's travel time.
Instead they just play make-believe humans and get the worst of both man and machine.
Utopiah (Fabien Benetou)@mastodonmigration what are you talking about, it's an "Innovative" corporation bringing us all a better World, of course no penalty! /$
This is sarcasm. Obviously for-profit companies should be liable when they make a mess. It doesn't matter how innovative they are. It's not public R&D but rather a path toward extractivism.
We are sold lies and when they barely work we have to pay for it. When they don't, we also have to. Disgusting, companies are psychopaths with the sole goal of making money regardless of consequences, they should be treated as such.
C.Suthorn 
tlariv@mastodonmigration
I think the question we'll be left asking is *where* are those penalties.
I think the question we'll be left asking is *where* are those penalties.