Waymo Suspends Robotaxi Service Across Multiple Cities Amid Protests

Waymo, Alphabet's autonomous vehicle subsidiary, currently leads the U.S. robotaxi market with active paid services in multiple cities including San Francisco, Los Angeles, Phoenix, and Austin. Despite the absence of a human driver, Waymo's fares average significantly higher than those of Lyft and Uber due to high capital expenditure on advanced sensor and computing hardware, as well as elevated insurance costs driven by regulatory and actuarial uncertainties. Recent protests against the Trump administration's immigration policies have disrupted Waymo's operations, with several robotaxis torched in Los Angeles and service suspended across multiple cities including San Francisco, Austin, Atlanta, and Phoenix during planned demonstrations. The protests have also raised concerns about data collection by Waymo vehicles and its sharing with law enforcement. Tesla, preparing to launch its robotaxi service in Austin, relies on a vision-only system with teleoperator support and faces scrutiny over safety and federal investigations, placing it behind Waymo in the autonomous driving race. Despite challenges like high technology costs and slower vehicle production, Waymo plans to expand to additional cities by 2026, maintaining a strong position bolstered by Alphabet's financial resources.