A San Francisco woman successfully delivered a baby inside a self-driving Waymo taxi earlier this week, providing a heartwarming story for a technology that often only makes headlines for the wrong reasons. This is wild news, and honestly, it’s a huge testament to the safety systems Waymo has built into its autonomous fleet.
The woman was heading to the University of California, San Francisco medical center on Monday when the birth happened mid-trip. Because there isn’t a human driver present in these robotaxis, the vehicle’s technology had to step up. A Waymo spokesperson confirmed that their rider support team immediately detected “unusual activity” inside the vehicle. They called to check on the rider and alerted 911 simultaneously. That’s a top-tier safety feature, knowing the car can phone for help even when there’s no human driver present.
