New study says Waymo’s robotaxis are safer than human-driven vehicles

Robotaxis have been a hot topic in 2024, stirring up both excitement and concern. Tesla’s flashy Cybercab robotaxi might grab attention with its futuristic marketing, but the real debate often comes down to one critical issue: safety.

A survey earlier this year showed that 68% of Americans worry about safety when it comes to self-driving vehicles (SDVs). However, more than half of those who raised concerns believe that the issues can be resolved or even think SDVs could outperform human drivers in safety.

This is where Alphabet-owned Waymo stands out. As the operator of the only functioning robotaxi service in the U.S., Waymo is putting significant effort into addressing these safety concerns. Partnering with insurance giant Swiss Re, Waymo recently released a study highlighting the impressive safety record of its Waymo Driver technology.

The research compared Waymo’s data to human driving statistics using Swiss Re’s massive dataset, which includes over 500,000 claims and 200 billion miles of exposure. The results showed an 88% drop in property damage claims and a 92% decrease in bodily injury claims for Waymo Drivers compared to human drivers.

To put this into perspective, Waymo vehicles have driven 25.3 million miles and been involved in just nine property damage claims and two bodily injury claims. Swiss Re estimates that human drivers covering the same distance would have racked up 78 property damage and 26 bodily injury claims. Waymo also pointed out that its autonomous miles showed fewer serious collisions than human drivers, regardless of fault.

While Waymo has gained the trust of regulators, it’s not the same story for all robotaxi operators. General Motors’ Cruise had to halt operations after a fatal pedestrian accident, and GM recently announced it will no longer fund the project. Meanwhile, Tesla is facing its own challenges. Regulators are investigating 2.4 million Tesla vehicles equipped with full self-driving software after multiple crashes, including one fatal incident. Despite this, Tesla is still aiming to launch its Cybercab robotaxi in 2025.

Interestingly, Tesla CEO Elon Musk seems to be taking a different route to address safety concerns. Musk, now head of a newly-formed government agency, appears to have influenced the incoming Trump administration to ease regulations on self-driving vehicles, including crash reporting requirements.

As the robotaxi race heats up, safety remains a critical factor that could determine which companies succeed—and which face roadblocks.