Waymo issued a software recall for 1,200 self-driving cars after some of the Robotaki were involved in minor collisions with road objects such as gates, chains and other gates.
The software update, first reported by Reuters, was implemented late last year, according to documents submitted to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). The Alphabet-owned company said in a document that Waymo’s Safety Board has decided to carry out a recall on that particular version of the unattended software in order to “meet relevant regulatory reporting obligations.”
The NHTSA began preliminary evaluations of Waymo’s autonomous driving system last May, and “none of these caused damage after learning seven incidents in which Robotaxis collided with “static and semi-rated objects” between December 2022 and April 2024.
In November 2024, Waymo deployed a software update to the Robotaxis fleet. According to documents submitted to the NHTSA, software updates have significantly reduced the likelihood of these types of events. Today, Waymo operates 1,500 commercial Robotaxis in Austin, Los Angeles, Phoenix and San Francisco.
According to the document, software updates were in progress when the NHTSA test began. The company had ongoing discussion with the NHTSA regarding the assessment of comparative risks in self-driving vehicles, providing the agency with information on nine additional conflicts with these types of barriers that occurred between February 2024 and December 2024.
Waymo has issued at least two other recalls. The company issued a software recall to Jaguar I-Pace Robotaxis in June 2024 after one of them collided with a utility pole. Waymo also recalled previous software in February 2024 after two Robotaxis collided with the same pickup truck that was being towed by a tow truck.
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