The company's latest recall of 3,871 vehicles follows incidents of its autonomous cars "prioritizing other hazards" or failing to recognize closed construction zones altogether. Waymo has filed its fourth safety recall since February 2024, after its driverless cars were caught entering closed freeway-construction zones. The recall, filed with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) on June 17, appears to affect Waymo's entire US fleet, covering 3,871 vehicles running Waymo's 5th Generation automated driving system (ADS). NHTSA estimates 100 precent of the affected units carry the defect, which is outlined in the filed safety recall report as "under certain circumstances, the AV may enter and drive at speed in freeway-construction zones due to inappropriately prioritizing the avoidance of other freeway hazards and/or failing to recognize the construction zone." Waymo started offering highway rides in late 2025, and the underlying problem appears to be a failure of priority logic.

The company is working on a fix and has restricted freeway driving. Waymo is recalling over 3,800 of its self-driving taxis due to a software issue that could cause them to enter closed freeway construction zones at speed, according to a National Highway Traffic Safety Admininstration (NHTSA) bulletin seen by Reuters . The company is reportedly working on a fix and has restricted freeway driving, the NHTSA safety notice states. It's not known if Waymo had an incident that prompted the recall. We identified an area of improvement regarding performance around freeway construction zones, Waymo told Engadget in a statement.

This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. Market data provided by Factset . Powered and implemented by FactSet Digital Solutions . Mutual Fund and ETF data provided by LSEG . McDonald's AI drive-thru may take your next order The Father's Day gift that protects your dad from scammers Grandparents are identity theft's biggest payday Do not click fake'account recovery' Amazon email Americans need protection against'warrantless surveillance': Rep Chip Roy Spencer Pratt's use of AI to boost campaign sparks debate China approves world's first commercial brain chip Atlanta residents captured alarming video of dozens of Waymo driverless cars continually circling their quiet neighborhood for hours.

Waymo's monthly membership seems like a bad deal Waymo's monthly membership seems like a bad deal You'll pay way mo' for a lot less compared to the competition. Waymo -- the Alphabet-owned driverless taxi service which has seen a rapid expansion in recent years -- is rolling out a new rewards program today. The service is called Waymo Premier, and it promises priority pickups along with a 10 percent in-app rebate applied to future rides. Subscribers will also get fee-free cancellations, though only up to five a month. Lastly, Premier gives subscribers the chance to be among the first to use Waymo in new cities as the service expands, which is certainly one way to reframe the concept of paying to beta test those new coverage areas.

It might not feel all that different from older World Cups--for better or worse. Waymo, the Alphabet subsidiary offering robotaxi rides in 11 US metros right now, says it's ready for the FIFA World Cup . Match attendees can catch driverless rides to six of the 16 North American venues: stadiums in Atlanta, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, and the San Francisco Bay Area. The sprawling football event, expected to attract some 6.5 million visitors to the continent over more than a month, could prove an exciting close-up for Waymo . The company says it's serving half-a-million paid rides a week--paltry stuff compared to the likes of ride-hail giants Uber and Lyft, but more impressive once you remember that the things don't have drivers.

A Waymo nearly hit me, but I'm still optimistic about driverless cars A near miss with a Waymo while cycling through London hasn't changed my optimistic stance on driverless cars, but we can't ever let our guard down, says Matthew Sparkes Waymo driverless cars are in London, but is this a positive move for road safety? Waymo's driverless cars have been rolling through London for months, although they aren't taking passengers yet and a human sits ready to seize control if needed. Every time I've encountered them, they have seemed cautious and predictable. But recently, I had a near miss. I was circling a roundabout as I cycled home from work and a Waymo was about to pull onto it in front of me.

The pale blue vans have begun picking up passengers in California and Arizona. Waymo has begun offering rides in its brand-new Ojai robotaxi to passengers in San Francisco, Los Angeles and Phoenix. Trips will be free for a limited time. The Ojai is a big step for Waymo. This is the company's first purpose-built robotaxi.

The pale-blue Ojai vehicles will start picking up members of the public in California and Arizona today. Starting today, Alphabet self-driving vehicle developer Waymo will start picking up members of the public in its new Ojai vehicles (pronounced "oh hai")--pale blue boxy minivans studded with sensors and complete with steering wheels, even though they're designed to travel without drivers. For now, the rides in these new cars, which can be summoned through Waymo's app, will be free. It's been a long road for the vehicle, first announced by Waymo in 2021 and tested on public streets since 2024. It's also a weird time for Waymo: The self-driving-vehicle company, which is trying to expand quickly across the US and the world, shut down service in six US cities last week due to issues with how its vehicles react to flooding.

Best Power Banks Best Smart Rings Routers vs. Modems Choose the Right Laptop Smart Sprinklers Deals Delivered The company is mapping Alexandria and, soon, Arlington--right across from the power center of Washington, DC. Self-driving cars aren't yet permitted to operate in Virginia. But Alphabet-owned Waymo began transporting its cars to the state last week, a Waymo representative told Virginia officials, to map Arlington and Alexandria, in the northern part of the state. For most autonomous vehicle companies, mapping, or the creation of sensor-aided and ultra-precise digital representations of streets and the features around them, is the first step required to launch a local robotaxi service. Drivers will operate the mapping vehicles for now, Waymo says.

The company has suspended operations in a second city. Autonomous cars are getting more capable all the time, but they remain a bit too willing to fight mother nature and lose. Case in point: Waymo has halted its robotaxi service in a second US city in the past fortnight due to issues with heavy rain and flooding. First reported by, the company has paused its operations in Atlanta after one of its self-driving vehicles was seen driving through a heavily flooded street, where it eventually got stuck for around an hour. This comes after Waymo also temporarily suspended its San Antonio service last week and issued a voluntary recall for nearly 4,000 robotaxis.