Incident·WS-0105·Jun 15, 2026·in the wild·Robotaxis & physical AI
Waymo recall after robotaxis drive into freeway work zones
31/100
WS-2 ModerateHarm score 25, signal score 38. Autonomy: acted (the AI took a bounded action). How the scores work.
Harm 1/5
damage actually done
Reach 2/5
who was affected
Autonomy 2/4
how much the AI did on its own
Novelty 1/5
how new the behavior was
Permanence 1/5
how hard it is to undo
After several robotaxis drove into active freeway construction zones, including one May 2026 incident that drew a police pursuit, Waymo paused freeway rides and issued a software recall in June 2026.
Damage
no injuries reported; safety-critical near-misses
The capability behind it
- Waymo passes 10 million paid driverless rides, 250,000 a weekMay 20, 2025 · Waymo (Alphabet) · reliable for a defined task: yes
Sources
Wired, second source. Evidence confidence: medium. The Wired article was blocked; facts come from Wikipedia's summary. The recall date and vehicle count were not verified.
Factor ratings and the score are this index’s judgments by a published formula; facts, dates and figures come from the linked sources. Where a lawsuit is pending, the summary reports allegations, not findings.
