Waymo, Alphabet's self-driving company, recently submitted a document to the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), announcing a recall of its self-driving software because the system still chose to continue driving despite detecting severe water on the road ahead. The recall involves 3,791 vehicles equipped with Waymo’s fifth- and sixth-generation autonomous driving systems.
According to documents submitted by Waymo to the NHTSA, a self-driving Waymo self-driving taxi encountered a "severe waterlogged section that was unsafe to navigate" on a stretch of road with a speed limit of 40 mph. Even though the vehicle recognized water accumulation ahead, the system chose to continue driving forward at a reduced speed rather than stopping or detouring in a safe area. Waymo said it is currently developing a permanent technical fix; before that, the company has improved the vehicle's limits in severe weather conditions through software updates and adjusted vehicle map data.
Waymo emphasized that the incident resulted in no casualties or other known accidents, but it also highlighted the risks and technical challenges faced by driverless vehicles in an environment with frequent changes in extreme weather and road conditions. Since it was officially put into operation, Waymo has been more cautious in regional selection, mainly focusing on cities with relatively warm and dry climates, such as Phoenix, Los Angeles, Atlanta and Austin. However, as the company plans to expand to cities on the East Coast of the United States such as Boston, New York, and Washington, D.C., its safety performance in more complex weather conditions such as rain, snow, and water will become one of the key indicators for the outside world to test the maturity of its technology.
This recall is also the first time Waymo’s sixth-generation autonomous driving system has been recalled. The sixth-generation system was officially launched earlier this year and is positioned as an autonomous driving platform that can support "high-scale mass production." Waymo's current Jaguar I-Pace fleet is mainly equipped with the company's fifth-generation autonomous driving technology, which was first launched in March 2020. The fifth-generation system has been subject to five recalls in the past due to issues including failing to yield properly when a school bus is parked and collisions with stationary objects.
Compared to the fifth generation, the sixth generation system is designed to be deployed seamlessly across multiple vehicle models. Waymo plans to first fully apply the sixth-generation system on its RT self-driving minivan (later renamed "Ojai") developed in cooperation with Jikrypton, and will later expand to the Ioniq 5 self-driving model in cooperation with Hyundai. The company is also negotiating with a number of car companies, including Toyota, to explore the possibility of more models equipped with its autonomous driving platform in the future.
In the context of overall prudent supervision of the autonomous driving industry, Waymo's voluntary recall is regarded as a response and correction to safety risks. However, as its vehicles and operating areas continue to expand, how to maintain system stability and redundant safety capabilities in extreme weather, unexpected road conditions, and complex urban environments will continue to be the focus of regulatory authorities, the public, and partner car companies.