KitKat was a well-known bodega cat in the Randa’s Market in San Francisco, California. Unfortunately, KitKat was fatally wounded in late October by a Waymo robotaxi, which is part of a new wave of transportation services monitored by artificial intelligence, meaning that they do not have drivers. Now, San Francisco and Los Angeles residents took to the streets to both vandalize a Waymo robotaxi and protest their use within the city.
The above video was posted to the TikTok account @vivxianna, and features a large protest group in the streets of San Francisco and Los Angeles, California. Several protestors can be seen standing atop a white vehicle that has been vandalized with graffiti. As protestors move out of the way, it becomes clearer that the specific vehicle being vandalized is a Waymo robotaxi.
Last week, a Waymo robotaxi was responsible for the injury and death of beloved bodega cat KitKat. Unfortunately, seeing as how these vehicles do not have physical drivers, there is no one to physically check and ensure that no animals or people are in the way of the car while it’s in motion. Seeing as it was able to hurt KitKat implies that these vehicles can potentially harm people just walking on the sidewalk.
South Fransisco Residents Protest Waymo
Commentators were very quick to condemn Waymo’s actions while also speaking out against artificial intelligence being more commonplace in everyday lives. Waymo is only free to operate in five cities across the country, these being Phoenix, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Atlanta, and Austin, with Silicon Valley passengers on a waitlist for select rides.
Originally, there were safety drivers present in the vehicles to ensure someone could prevent collisions and accidents, but they have been removed as of October 2020. In the above video, what appears to be thousands of San Francisco residents stepped out into the streets to surround the Waymo car and make an example out of it. It isn’t clear if this is the exact same vehicle that struck Kit Kat.
Many comments revolve around these safety issues, with some of the top ones saying, “Because if it won’t stop for a cat why should we trust it with children,” and “There’s zero good reason for Waymo to exist – it’s literally a corporation trying to not pay an employee. So we accept corporate greed is good enough to justify people and animals dying?!?!“
Waymo has not commented on the death of KitKat, and it appears that their vehicles are continuing to operate as normal in the San Francisco area.
