Waymo issues a voluntary recall on its self-driving vehicle software

Waymo The company announced Tuesday that it has filed a voluntary recall with federal vehicle safety regulators for software previously used in its self-driving cars, its first recall. letterof autonomous vehicle units.

in a company Blog article On Tuesday, Waymo said it chose to conduct a voluntary recall after consulting with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and an internal review of two incidents that occurred in Phoenix on December 11, 2023, in which two robots The taxi crashed into the same tractor-trailer pickup truck within minutes of each other.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Waymo said in the post that the two collisions involving its robotaxis resulted in only minor vehicle damage and no injuries. There were no passengers in the vehicle, according to the post.

Waymo spokesperson Katherine Barna said Waymo’s Autonomous Driving System (ADS) incorrectly predicted “future movement of the tractor-trailer,” and the company’s voluntary recall included an update to its software to address the issue. Barna added that the company updates the software when the cars return to Waymo garages for scheduled maintenance and recharging, rather than via over-the-air or remote software updates.

Barna said the software update was completed on January 12 and did not disrupt Waymo’s ride-hailing services.

Waymo currently operates its driverless ride-hailing service, Waymo One, in Phoenix, San Francisco, Los Angeles and Austin. Barna said the company’s Waymo One fleet has a total of about 700 vehicles, with hundreds of vehicles in each fully autonomous Waymo One service area.

In recent months, there has been some public backlash against self-driving cars and how they are tested and rolled out on public roads, following crashes and concerns about the impact of automation on drivers’ jobs.

Waymo has generally faced the least public criticism, in part because of its public affairs communications with agencies like NHTSA and local first responders. Waymo says its fully autonomous driving has driven 10 million miles and served more than 1 million rides.

However, in the fourth quarter of 2023, the California Department of Motor Vehicles suspended a deployment and testing license previously issued to Waymo competitor Cruise, which is owned by Waymo General Motors.

The permits were revoked following an incident on October 2, 2023, in which a pedestrian in San Francisco was dragged for 20 years by a Cruise robotaxi after he was first hit by another human-driven vehicle. foot.

Another potential Waymo competitor, TeslaTesla’s Autonomous Driving System (ADS) or robotaxis have yet to be launched, despite CEO Elon Musk’s promise that by the end of 2017, Tesla’s self-driving cars will be able to travel across the United States without any human intervention. Instead, Tesla sells advanced driver assistance systems marketed as “Autopilot” and “Full Self-Driving” options.

The California DMV has filed formal charges against Tesla, saying the company’s marketing and advertising were deceptive.

A self-driving Waymo vehicle collided with a cyclist in San Francisco last week, causing minor injuries, an incident that is now under review by the state’s automobile regulators.

In another incident, unknown parties set Waymo vehicle catches fire in San Francisco on SaturdayChinatown during Chinese New Year celebrations. No group has claimed responsibility for the destruction of Waymo cars.Authorities are reportedly investigating who is responsible NBC Bay Area.