Even driverless robo cars know a riot when they "see" one. That's why Waymo has temporarily suspended service in the riot-torn parts of L.A. until the so-called leadership gets its act together.
Fortunately, the Waymo firebombings could come back to bite the rioters in the backside. Waymo has offered police help in identifying the bad actors who torched their $200,000 cars.
I hope those bad guys said "cheese" before they got their pictures taken.
But first things first. As you may have noticed, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass and Gov. Gavin Newsom have trotted out the approved Democrat talking points, accusing President Donald Trump of "stoking chaos" because he wants to put down the latest L.A. riot before it spreads city-wide.
We know that the word "chaos" must test well with focus groups. The word doesn't have to be defined. It doesn't convey anything concrete, but it does cast uncertainty and doubt on where the finger of blame points. The media know whose finger to follow. Sit. Stay. Good media.
The two elected leaders and their bizarre congressional delegation, starring Mad Max Waters, insisted all weekend that there was no riot and that things were "under control" — until they weren't. By that time, Trump had "stoked" the National Guard and had them on the streets before Thunderdome occurred.
Well, our betters might not know a riot when they see one, but the company using driverless robo cars sure does. And Waymo is temporarily halting business in L.A. until all those "peaceful protesters" stop setting their cars on fire.
🚨BREAKING: Waymo shuts down operations in Los Angeles after left-wing rioters set their cars on fire. pic.twitter.com/9PIFshoxPA
— Benny Johnson (@bennyjohnson) June 9, 2025
Let's talk about Waymo. The company, formerly known as the "Google self-driving car project," operates "autonomous" cars in L.A. and other cities in the country that aren't freaked out by driverless cars. The Mountain View-based company uses mostly Jaguar electric cars for their taxis, which are tricked out with all kinds of AI technology.
Kids chasing dogs, chasing balls on the streets of LA… once again, @Waymo AI with advanced sensing making our roads safer. pic.twitter.com/QGZxDtuKaU
— Dmitri Dolgov (@dmitri_dolgov) June 4, 2025
The cars use laser beam sensors that act as a more sensitive radar to detect pedestrians and other objects in their path. Cars are outfitted with 3-D sensors and 29 cameras. Each camera has a 360º view.
Related: Gavin Newsom Told Trump to Get Troops Out of California. Then, All Hell Broke Loose in L.A.
On Sunday afternoon, a line of five Waymo cars was set on fire on Los Angeles Street between Arcadia and Alameda in downtown Los Angeles.
How did they all get to that one spot? Somebody, or maybe many somebodies, ordered taxis, and the driverless cars simply drove themselves to the scene of the planned riot. These suspects presumably gave payment information, which the company requires, ordered the taxis to the pickup spot, which was in the middle of the street, and then set them on fire.
WATCH: Multiple Waymo vehicles set ablaze in #LARiots #AntiICEProtests continue to escalate
— Video Forensics (@Video_Forensics) June 9, 2025
Credit: @BGOnTheScene pic.twitter.com/9YLGpwXHVF
But first, they attacked the cars, and this is where things get interesting.
Before they set them on fire and the connection to the Waymo home base was lost, rioters were "slashing tires, tagging the windows," and setting them on fire. Not everyone was wearing a mask. The rioters must have been captured on video attacking the cars.
And somebody might have to pay for those cars. Each one of them costs as much as $200,000 when they're outfitted with all the tech. The base price of the electric Jag is $72,000 alone.
So Waymo has offered the LAPD help in identifying the bad guys.
The obvious downside is this: If you're a bad actor, all you have to do is call robo-taxis to block a street. Then, when you set them on fire, you've created a toxic weapon. It sounds like this technology isn't ready for prime time until these issues are sorted out.
Fox11 in L.A. reported that, sadly, the L.A. Fire Department couldn't put out the burning cars because the toxic gas spewing from the high-tech lithium-ion batteries used to power the vehicles was a health hazard.
A total of 42 people were arrested by LAPD, 27 of whom were for failing to disperse from a riot, according to Fox11. Ten were arrested for assault with a deadly weapon on a police officer, including one guy who intentionally crashed his motorcycle into a police officer. Another three were arrested for attempted murder using a Molotov cocktail. Several others were busted for looting, and two people were arrested for arson.
The area around the car torchings was mercilessly tagged with "words not suitable for television," and several stores were looted.
I'd call that a riot.
And it's all recorded.
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