Waymo called the cops on teen riders, raising privacy concerns

Technology Waymo called the cops on teen riders, raising privacy concerns July 10, 20265:00 AM ET By  Scott Neuman A Waymo robotaxi drives in San Francisco's North Beach neighborhood this week. Heather Diehl/Getty Images hide caption toggle caption Heather Diehl/Getty Images Police in San Mateo, Calif., posted Monday on social media that they had apprehended a pair of teenagers from a Waymo driverless robotaxi after the company alerted authorities to suspected criminal activity. It's the latest incident involving video surveillance of passengers and others by autonomous vehicles — raising questions about the limits of privacy in such vehicles. Technology Waymo will recall software after its self-driving cars passed stopped school buses The Facebook post by the San Mateo County Police said: "Parents do you know where your teens are? @waymo does!" The 15-year-olds were allegedly drinking alcohol and shooting toy guns from the car, according to the police. They said Waymo's systems detected behavior that then triggered a safety response, after which the company disabled the vehicle and contacted police. Waymo's cars, equipped with an array of cameras, microphones and other sensors to monitor passengers and other nearby vehicles, are becoming more common in cities across the United States. Experts say the detention of the two teens in San Mateo highlights a potential — but not inevitable — trade-off between privacy and convenience. It also questions the extent to which companies similar to Waymo are required to hand over private data, including audio and video of passengers, in situations where a crime is suspected. Sponsor Message NPR reached out to Waymo, which is owned by Alphabet, the parent company of Google, for comment on the details of the San Mateo incident and how the company responded, but did not hear back. But on its website, the company says that as many as 29 cameras in its autonomous cars provide an all-around view and "are designed with high dynami...