(Dec 24): Alphabet Inc’s Waymo said it would strengthen its automated software to better handle power outages after its self-driving taxis froze and caused traffic jams during a major electricity failure last weekend in San Francisco. While the vehicles “successfully” handled 7,000 traffic signals that were knocked out by San Francisco’s power failure on Dec 20, the outage “created a concentrated spike in these requests,” the company said. When city officials urged motorists to stay off the streets, Waymo said it suspended service. The power failures, touched off by a fire at a PG&E Corp substation, rolled through San Francisco during the weekend, at one point affecting about 130,000 customers. Social media videos showed multiple Waymo vehicles stopped in the middle of streets with their hazard lights flashing, creating massive backups.

Source: The Edge Markets December 24, 2025 01:50 UTC