Waymo recalled 3,791 robotaxis after an unoccupied vehicle drove into a flooded road in San Antonio, Texas, and was swept into a creek, a software flaw that let the cars enter standing water.
- Date of incident
- 2026-05-12
- Location
- San Antonio, Texas, USA
- Sources
- 8
Established by press reporting. No regulator or court document is linked to this case yet.
This case comes from a recall notice, so the size of the affected fleet is known: 3,791 units and 1 incidents acknowledged by the manufacturer, which is 2.64 per 10,000 units.
How the event developed
- 2026-05-12Follow-up
Waymo issues fix for all self-driving taxis to prevent driving into flooded roads
nytimes.com - 2026-05-12Follow-up
Waymo recalled 3,791 robotaxis nationwide due to a software flaw that could allow autonomous vehicles to drive into flooded roads, amid growing federal scrutiny including a January 2026 incident in Santa Monica where a Waymo vehicle struck a child.
thebeatdfw.com - 2026-05-12Recall
Waymo recalls 3,800 robotaxis due to software risk of driving into flooded roads
reuters.com - 2026-05-12Follow-up
Waymo issued a voluntary software recall for nearly 3,800 robotaxis due to a software issue that allowed the vehicles to drive into standing water on higher-speed roadways.
nbcnews.com - 2026-05-12Recall
A Waymo robotaxi was swept away by floodwaters in San Antonio, Texas, prompting Waymo to issue a voluntary software recall covering approximately 3,791 vehicles due to the vehicles failing to stop when encountering untraversable flooded roads.
techcrunch.com - 2026-05-13Recall
An empty Waymo robotaxi entered a flooded road in San Antonio, Texas, and was swept into a creek, prompting a voluntary recall of nearly 3,800 robotaxis over a software issue that could allow vehicles to drive onto flooded roads.
bbc.com - 2026-05-13Recall
An unoccupied Waymo robotaxi entered a flooded lane in San Antonio, prompting a voluntary software recall of nearly 3,800 vehicles filed with NHTSA.
autos.yahoo.com - 2026-05-14Recall
A driverless Waymo robotaxi drove into a flooded section of roadway in San Antonio and was swept into Salado Creek, prompting Waymo to recall 3,791 vehicles and issue an over-the-air software update; no one was harmed.
au.pcmag.com
Every claim above traces to one of these
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- nytimes.comWaymo issues fix for all self-driving taxis to prevent driving into flooded roads2026-05-12no copytier 1
- thebeatdfw.comWaymo recalled 3,791 robotaxis nationwide due to a software flaw that could allow autonomous vehicles to drive into flooded roads, amid growing federal scrutiny including a January 2026 incident in Santa Monica where a Waymo vehicle struck a child.2026-05-12copy 2026-10-19tier 2
- reuters.comWaymo recalls 3,800 robotaxis due to software risk of driving into flooded roads2026-05-12copy 2026-10-12tier 1
- nbcnews.comWaymo issued a voluntary software recall for nearly 3,800 robotaxis due to a software issue that allowed the vehicles to drive into standing water on higher-speed roadways.2026-05-12copy 2026-10-11tier 1
- techcrunch.comA Waymo robotaxi was swept away by floodwaters in San Antonio, Texas, prompting Waymo to issue a voluntary software recall covering approximately 3,791 vehicles due to the vehicles failing to stop when encountering untraversable flooded roads.2026-05-12copy 2026-10-07tier 2
- bbc.comAn empty Waymo robotaxi entered a flooded road in San Antonio, Texas, and was swept into a creek, prompting a voluntary recall of nearly 3,800 robotaxis over a software issue that could allow vehicles to drive onto flooded roads.2026-05-13copy 2026-10-17tier 1
- autos.yahoo.comAn unoccupied Waymo robotaxi entered a flooded lane in San Antonio, prompting a voluntary software recall of nearly 3,800 vehicles filed with NHTSA.2026-05-13copy 2026-10-13tier 2
- au.pcmag.comA driverless Waymo robotaxi drove into a flooded section of roadway in San Antonio and was swept into Salado Creek, prompting Waymo to recall 3,791 vehicles and issue an over-the-air software update; no one was harmed.2026-05-14copy 2026-10-23tier 2
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