A person jumped on the hood of a Waymo driverless taxi and smashed its windshield in San Francisco's Chinatown last night around 9 pm Pacific Time, drawing applause before a crowd formed around the car and covered it with spray paint, breaking the windows and finally setting it on fire. fire. Firefighters arrived minutes later, according to a report in The autopiobut by then the flames had already completely engulfed the car.
At the moment, no media appears to have reported the reason for the attack. Waymo representative Sandy Karp said The edge via email that the fully autonomous car was “not carrying passengers” when it was attacked and fireworks were thrown into the car, causing the flames. Public information officer Robert Rueca of the San Francisco Police Department confirmed in an email to The edge that police responded “approximately” at 8:50 p.m. PT and found the car already on fire, adding that “there were no reports of injuries.”
A video posted on the FriscoLive415 YouTube channel shows the burned casing of the electric Waymo Jaguar.
Another set of videos posted by software developer Michael Vendi offers a view of the scene as it unfolded and the fire grew.
City officials and residents last year objected to the cars receiving a license to operate 24/7, and some residents immobilized them by placing orange cones on the hoods of the cars as a signal. of protest.
Update February 11, 2024, 3:00 pm ET: Updated attribution from San Francisco Police Public Information Officer Robert Rueca.
