Tesla, Waymo defend autonomous vehicle safety as Congress weighs federal standards

"Roughly half of U.S. states now have their own rules for driverless cars, creating a patchwork of regulations. Lawmakers say that uneven oversight, combined with several high-profile incidents, underscores the need for uniform federal guardrails that don't stifle innovation yet ensure public safety. Senators cite safety issues, demand more transparency "We need more honesty from the industry so that there is in fact transparency in everything that they know that the American public should know as well," said Sen. Ed Markey, D-MA."

"Senators also raised concerns about real-world failures - from autonomous vehicles freezing during a San Francisco power outage to a Waymo vehicle hitting and injuring a child in Santa Monica last week. Mauricio Peña, Waymo's chief safety officer, acknowledged the incidents and said the company has already made software changes. "We have already incorporated many changes to our software to dramatically improve our performance," Peña said. He added that Waymo's internal analysis showed the system "would have reacted faster" than an attentive human driver in the recent Santa Monica case."

"Bryant Walker Smith, a law professor who studies AV policy, testified that companies bear the responsibility for their vehicle behavior: "There are no self-driving or driverless cars. The companies that develop and deploy AVs are the drivers.""

Senators pressed Tesla and Waymo executives over recent software failures, crash incidents, and transparency concerns as Congress considers national safety standards for autonomous vehicles. Roughly half of U.S. states maintain their own rules, creating a patchwork of oversight that lawmakers say necessitates uniform federal guardrails to protect public safety without stifling innovation. Lawmakers cited incidents including vehicles freezing during a San Francisco power outage and a Waymo vehicle injuring a child in Santa Monica. Waymo reported software changes and said internal analysis showed its system would have reacted faster than an attentive human. Experts emphasized that companies bear responsibility for AV behavior while companies highlighted long-term safety benefits.

Read at ABC7 San Francisco