The self-driving dream hit a pothole today. Waymo, the Alphabet darling of autonomous transport, has recalled thousands of its robotaxis after an entire fleet decided to go for a swim. Yes, you read that right. A creek in San Francisco became an unintended terminus for dozens of vehicles. The cause? A software glitch that turned a routine route into a synchronised splashdown.
Westminster types will be watching this with glee. Self-driving cars are the perfect totem for the technocratic elite. A shiny promise of a frictionless future. But when the tech rebels, it's a gift to the sceptics. Remember the 'Gove vs. Musk' spat? This is ammunition for the anti-automation brigade.
The recall is massive. Thousands of units. The cost will run into the billions. But the real damage is to the narrative. Waymo had been boasting of 'safety data' that showed fewer accidents than human drivers. Now they have to explain how a fleet can collectively decide to abandon the road.
Details are murky. My sources say the glitch was in the 'hydrological avoidance' module. Essentially, the cars failed to recognise the creek as an obstacle. They processed it as a road. A very wet road. The company insists no one was hurt. But the images of robotaxis bobbing in the water are a PR nightmare.
This plays into a deeper fear: that we are ceding too much control to algorithms. The transport secretary will be fielding questions. Expect calls for a moratorium on autonomous trials. The opposition will pounce. 'Labour demands answers' is already being briefed.
Inside the Lobby, the chatter is about 'regulatory capture'. Waymo had been lobbying hard for relaxed rules. They argued their tech was proven. Now they have a watery footnote to their pitch. The Department for Transport will be wary. No minister wants to be the one who authorised robotaxis after a mass drowning of vehicles.
The recall is voluntary. But it's effectively mandatory. The company's reputation is on the line. They will fix the glitch. They will retest. But the trust is broken. For now, the autonomous future has stalled.
In the Commons, backbenchers are already tabling questions. The tone is gleeful. 'Robotaxi Rebellion' is the phrase being whispered. The government's own AI strategy is now under scrutiny. If the machines can't avoid a creek, how can they navigate Whitehall?
The irony is delicious. This is a story about control. A technology designed to eliminate human error has instead created a new kind of failure. Groupthink, but for algorithms. The fleet followed each other into the water. A digital lemmings moment.
What happens next? Waymo will recall, repair, and rebrand. But the political fallout is just beginning. This will be a case study in the perils of hype. For those of us who cover the game, it's a reminder: in politics and tech, when things look too good to be true, they usually end up in a ditch. Or a creek.
