A woman in San Francisco gave birth inside a Waymo robotaxi on Monday night while traveling to UCSF Medical Center, becoming one of the latest documented cases of childbirth occurring en route to a hospital — this time involving a driverless vehicle.
Waymo’s Remote Team Detected Unusual Activity
According to The SF Standard, Waymo’s remote support team identified “unusual activity” inside the autonomous vehicle and contacted 911. The robotaxi nevertheless arrived at the hospital before emergency responders. Waymo told the publication that the situation was rare, noting that it was not the first time a birth had taken place inside one of its vehicles; a previous case occurred in Phoenix.
A Waymo spokesperson said the company removed the vehicle from service for cleaning following the incident.
Long History of En Route Births
Childbirths in transit have occurred across various forms of hired transportation for decades, with taxis and ride-share vehicles frequently involved in similar situations. Past examples include a woman in India who named her child after the ride-share service involved in her delivery, and a 2017 case in California in which parents welcomed their baby in an Uber during Shabbat.
Waymo’s incident adds a new context to those longstanding experiences as autonomous vehicles become more common in major cities.
Featured image credits: Wikimedia Commons
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