Unusual accident in Los Angeles: two robots collide on video

A “crash” of a Waymo taxi and a Serve Robotics delivery robot occurred in Los Angeles, UNN reports with reference to TechCrunch.

A video of a robot “accident” that occurred on December 27 at an intersection in Los Angeles began circulating on social media. A Waymo robot taxi and a Serve Robotics robot deliveryman collided.

The video shows the Serve robot crossing the street at night and trying to drive onto the sidewalk. It drove to the curb, backed up a bit to right itself, and started moving toward the pantus. That's when a Waymo turning right hit the little bot.

The person who posted the video said that the Serve bot ran a red light before the collision, although this is not evident in the footage.

The company's representative said that the robot is designed to choose the safest route based on the information it receives, and it has the ability to classify and distinguish between road users and objects around it. For example, it is programmed to be more careful with children and pedestrians.

This does not mean that a Waymo robot will simply demolish everything in its path; in this case, the delivery robot stopped at the curb before entering the turn lane, just as the Waymo robot taxi entered the intersection. According to a Waymo spokesperson, the Waymo driver applied harsh braking before colliding with the delivery robot.

Both robots remained unharmed in the collision, but they were blocked for several minutes before moving away.

Waymo said that when a collision occurs, Waymo Driver notifies the Fleet Response team and sends a representative to the scene. The Fleet Response team inspects the scene remotely and sends a representative to assist if necessary. Rider Support checks the condition of the robot taxis and, if necessary, contacts first responders.

Recall

In 2025, 30 robotic nurses called Missi will be introduced as part of a pilot project at the National University Hospital (NUH) in Singapore.