If you think no one is paying attention inside your driverless taxi, think again. Two California teenagers were detained Monday after a Waymo detected suspicious behavior during their ride and alerted police in San Mateo.
The teenagers were allegedly spotted drinking alcohol and using toy guns to shoot Orbeez—small, squishy jelly-bean-like water beads—out the windows, leading Waymo to park in a nearby lot and lock the passengers inside until authorities showed up. A video posted to social media shows around five armed officers and a K9 unit circling the Waymo vehicle, as officials responded to the alert as a high-risk traffic stop, NBC first reported.
“Parents, do you know where your teens are?” The San Mateo Police Department said on social media. “Waymo does!” Fast Company reached out to Waymo but did not immediately receive comment.
Waymo spotted the suspicious behavior via the interior cameras and microphones aboard all Waymo robotaxis, which serve as “the ‘eyes and ears’ of our Waymo Driver,” the company’s support page says. The technology is used to make sure that vehicles remain clean, help passengers find lost items, and provide assistance during emergency situations.
Waymo spotted behavior that appeared to be the teenagers shooting a weapon from the car windows, though police later determined it to be an Orbeez gun.
“While there was some ingenuity to this scheme, toy guns, water guns, and BB guns all pose real dangers, especially to the untrained eye,” the San Mateo Police Department posted on Facebook. “The simple handling of them can cause fear in passersby or to those who don’t get a good look.”
Additionally, law enforcement noted that even soft objects like Orbeez water beads can cause damage when projected at a high speed.
Many praised the company for taking quick action, but others on social media think the reaction might not have warranted such a response. “Incredibly dangerous over-aggressive enforcement. It’s dumb kids drinking,” one person commented.
And some called out the dangers of an autonomous vehicle taking the decision to lock passengers in the car without their consent. “Kids should have called the cops on Waymo for kidnapping and trafficking,” another user added on X.
But for others, the bizarre event is just the beginning as robotaxi services continue to make their way into daily life.
A user posted on X: “The wild part is that this probably won’t be the last strange scenario companies have to solve as self-driving vehicles become more common.”
