The massive power outage in San Francisco caused Robotaxi to "collapse" and block roads, prompting Waymo to urgently upgrade its software: granting vehicles more autonomy

Waymo announced on Tuesday local time that it will systematically upgrade its autonomous vehicle fleet to enhance emergency response capabilities in the event of extreme infrastructure failures.

This initiative stems from a large-scale power outage in San Francisco last week, during which Waymo's self-driving taxis became embroiled in traffic chaos after traffic lights failed, exposing the vulnerabilities of autonomous driving technology in extreme scenarios.

Waymo stated that the company is implementing three emergency measures to improve the system, including technology updates across the fleet, upgrades to emergency response protocols, and coordination mechanisms with the San Francisco city government.

The company indicated that it will provide vehicles with "more background information on regional power outages," enabling cars to take more decisive actions at intersections. It emphasized that it will continue to develop autonomous driving technology that adapts to various real-world situations.

Unprecedented Scale of Power Outage, Complete Traffic System Paralysis

According to a previous article from Wall Street Watch, a widespread power outage occurred in the San Francisco Bay Area on Saturday afternoon, affecting approximately 130,000 users, with traffic lights completely failing.

Waymo's self-driving taxis were unable to recognize the status of signals, becoming "roadblocks" at intersections and in the middle of streets, exacerbating urban congestion.

Videos circulating on social media showed multiple Waymo vehicles lingering too long while confirming intersection statuses, forcing human drivers to detour. Waymo subsequently coordinated with municipal officials and proactively suspended operations from Saturday evening to Sunday morning to ensure that emergency vehicles could pass.

Waymo Launches Three Emergency Improvement Measures

Waymo issued a statement on Tuesday stating that the company is analyzing the incident and taking three "immediate measures" to improve system performance.

The first measure involves "updates across the fleet," providing vehicles with "more background information on regional power outages," enabling cars to take more decisive actions at intersections. The company is also improving "emergency response protocols" and coordinating with Mayor Lurie's team to strengthen emergency preparedness cooperation.

The third measure is to update first responder training, "drawing lessons from this and other large-scale events." Waymo stated: "We have always focused on developing Waymo Driver for the real world, including situations involving infrastructure failures."

The company emphasized that during the incident, it "commanded the fleet to pull over and park appropriately to ensure that vehicles could be returned to the garage in batches," ensuring that "congestion would not be further increased or emergency vehicles obstructed during peak recovery times."

Business Expansion and Technical Challenges Coexist

In addition to the San Francisco Bay Area, Waymo currently offers paid ride services in Austin, Texas, Phoenix, Atlanta, and Los Angeles. The company's recent estimates indicate that it completes approximately 450,000 paid rides per week, stating in December that it had served 14 million rides by 2025, with the expectation of exceeding 20 million total rides by the end of the year since its launch in 2020 Waymo stated in a statement: "With over 100 million miles of fully autonomous driving experience and a record of improving road safety, we embrace the opportunity to challenge the status quo and are proud to continue serving the residents and visitors of San Francisco."

This power outage incident provides valuable real-world experience for the entire autonomous driving industry, highlighting that how to respond to extreme scenarios remains a significant challenge faced by the industry as technology rapidly evolves. This incident may prompt more autonomous driving companies to reassess their systems' capabilities in the event of infrastructure failures.

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