Waymo, a company that claims it is on a mission to create the most trusted driver, has repeatedly failed to live up to that promise. With hundreds of collisions and accidents since the installation of their self-driving cars in the Bay Area, safety remains at the forefront of the minds of Bay Area residents.
Since the launch of its public service in San Francisco, Waymo has accumulated hundreds of incidents in the Bay Area alone. California leads the nation in automated driving service accidents in the country. Constantly asked questions about automated driving systems are: how do they navigate? How do they avoid collisions? Who pays for damages? In recent years, these questions have been directed at Waymo.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), Waymo leads the country in automated driving system crashes, with 1,331 incidents as of Oct. 15, 2025. That number is a far cry from the “safest driver” mission that they claim to pursue. Cruise, the company with the second-highest number of incidents, reported 156 crashes during the same period — barely a tenth of Waymo’s total —despite only a four-year age gap between the companies.
As one of the oldest automated driving systems, Waymo has more time to improve its systems compared to competitors to refine its technology. The company, owned by Alphabet Inc., continues to grow its operations in Texas, Georgia, and California, along with creating new operations in more states and even expanding to other countries, including Japan and the United Kingdom — all while its incident count keeps climbing.
Waymo has seen many accidents since its inception, with one of the most recent being the tragic death of beloved bodega cat Kit Kat, who was hit by a Waymo vehicle in San Francisco.
The company attempted to counter criticism by conducting a company research paper to show that fewer Waymo vehicles are involved in accidents. The results Waymo released from this research were positive and painted the picture that Waymo vehicles are safer than human-driven vehicles. However, with Waymo operating in such limited areas, its data can’t be fully representative. The company has intentions of expanding its operations, but the consequences of Waymo vehicles will be unknown once these vehicles become ubiquitous.
There are still prominent supporters of Waymo and its usage in large cities. San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie defended Waymo and its presence in the city in response to being asked about Kit Kat.
“Waymo is incredibly safe,” he said. “It’s safer than you or I getting behind a wheel.”
With the future of technology still advancing, it’s guaranteed that Waymo will improve and develop. But right now, Waymo is not yet where they wish to be, as “the most trusted driver.”
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TOP PHOTO: Waymo, owned by Alphabet LLC, is a leader in the field of automated driving systems. Waymo plans to expand operations in the coming years to include more cities, states, and countries. (Photo courtesy of Waymo)
Musa Ashraf is the Arts & Entertainment Editor. Follow him on X, @MusaZash.
