The United States is getting taken over by robotaxis.
One brand offering robotaxi services is Avride. And they’ve been developing autonomous driving technology since 2017. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has recently opened an investigation into 16 crashes involving Avride, all of which occurred in Dallas and Austin, Texas.
The NHTSA states that the Avride vehicles had their autonomous driving systems engaged at the time of the accidents. The ADS failed to operate safely on multiple occasions, including changing lanes into the way of other vehicles, not responding to vehicles entering their lane, and even hitting stationary objects. An in-vehicle operator was in the driver’s seat during all of these incidents.
Luckily, all it’s led to is a minor injury and property damage. Still, the NHTSA wants to evaluate Avride’s ADS to see if it poses a risk to passengers and pedestrians alike.
Robotaxis are taking over, but it’s a good thing
Avride is just one of many robotaxi companies you’ll encounter in cities across the United States. Waymo is the clear industry leader right now, although Waymo has also been involved in a few accidents — including hitting a child. Still, studies show that Waymo is overall pretty safe, even compared to human drivers. I personally enjoy riding Waymo, where you don’t need to talk to a driver. Or tip.
However, there are a ton of other robotaxi services already on the road and in the works. Lucid and Rivian are both working to bring large fleets to Uber. Tesla is also working on bringing its long-awaited (or long-feared, in some cases) Cybercab to cities across the United States. But this has been another one of Elon Musk’s grand claims so far.
Tesla revealed the Cybercab concept in October 2024 during the “We, Robot” presentation, which didn’t show any actual driving. Since then, Tesla has been trickling out Model Y robotaxis with in-vehicle operators in very small areas. There are a few dozen of them, despite Musk calling Waymo’s 2,500-vehicle fleet milestone in November 2025 “rookie numbers.” Which I’m sure Tesla fanboys loved. The weirdos.
The Cybercab finally existed a few years later, looking mighty ugly on the outside and, on the inside, dystopian and dangerous. That’s because the Cybercab doesn’t have a steering wheel or pedals. It’s designed to be fully autonomous. The issue? Tesla’s Full Self-Driving mode is nowhere near capable of this. A lot of prominent Tesla leaders have started to leave the Cybercab project, likely not wanting to be associated with whatever doomed things come of this limited FSD as it brings victims around town.
As these robotaxis roll out across the United States, residents of major cities have very mixed reactions. While Waymo running over a cat sparked protests in San Francisco, most people in the area prefer Waymo to a typical Lyft or Uber ride. Some are wary of robots and AI, not yet trusting that it’s safe, and point out the times Waymo has gotten in the way. But others have loved taking rides in Waymo. Either way, Waymo is expanding with new vehicles, including the Ojai minivan.
It doesn’t seem like robotaxis are slowing down any time soon. And I honestly don’t want it to. Sixteen accidents? Please. A random guy probably has 16 accidents in the span of a few months. I feel these robotaxis are under a microscope and every little incident is blasted as a think piece or “gotcha” moment. As if no human has ever ran over a cat. One blog claims 5.4 million cats are hit by cars every year in the United States, with an estimated 97% of those incidents resulting in death. But Waymo must be stopped?
Very performative.
Do I think that robotaxis should be regulated and that their safety should be consistently checked? Yes. But do I think they are actually a menace? No. Actual facts indicate they are overall reliable and safe. I think it’s time to embrace the future of the road.
