AI incident ·
Waymo Robotaxi Reportedly Remained Immobilized While Vandals Smashed Vehicle with Passenger Inside
On this page 7 sections
In brief
An AI system built by Waymo and Automated Driving System Developers and deployed by Waymo, Robotaxi Operators and 1 other allegedly harmed Waymo Passengers, Sherman Watson and 3 others.
- Risk domain
- Not classified
- Occurred
- Coverage
- 1 report
What happened
On May 9, 2026, two men reportedly stopped and vandalized a Waymo robotaxi carrying passenger Sherman Watson at Pierce and Lombard streets in San Francisco. The autonomous driving system reportedly remained immobilized after one man grabbed the bumper, and remote support declined Watson's request to move the vehicle while the attackers smashed its windows and climbed on it. Watson reported a possible glass cut, sought therapy, and said he feared he would be killed.
Laws on record for this risk area
No instrument on record yet covers this risk area where it happened. See the open queue.
Matched from the record's risk category and country to the instruments in effect recorded here: a law listed covers the area, which is not a finding that it applies to this incident. A reviewer can correct the match in the repository (data/external/incident_overrides.yaml).
News reports (1)
Titles link to the original publisher; report text is not reproduced here.
Who was involved
- Alleged deployer
- Waymo, Robotaxi Operators, Automated Driving System Deployers
- Alleged developer
- Waymo, Automated Driving System Developers
- Alleged harmed party
- Waymo Passengers, Sherman Watson, Robotaxi Passengers, Road Users, Passengers
Classification (MIT AI Risk Repository taxonomy)
- Risk domain
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- Risk subdomain
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- Causal entity
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- Intent
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- Timing
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- Harm level
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Other incidents involving Waymo, Robotaxi Operators, Automated Driving System Deployers
- Waymo Robotaxi Reportedly Entered Flooded San Antonio Roadway and Was Swept Into Waterway
- Waymo Robotaxi Reportedly Obstructed Ambulance Responding to Austin Mass Shooting
- Waymo Robotaxi Reportedly Entered Phoenix Light-Rail Tracks, Prompting Passenger to Exit
- Two Waymo Robotaxis Allegedly Contributed to Bike-Lane Collision That Injured San Francisco Cyclist
Source record: incident #1599 on the AI Incident Database · all 1 report