SMRTR TechDec 22, 2025Ars Technica

Power outage paralyzes Waymo robotaxis when traffic lights go out

SMRTR summary

A widespread power outage in San Francisco caused Waymo's robotaxis to become paralyzed at intersections when traffic lights stopped working, despite being programmed to treat such situations as four-way stops. The scale of the outage overwhelmed the autonomous vehicles, forcing Waymo to temporarily suspend service as videos of motionless robotaxis flooded social media.

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