Source: https://gizmodo.com/waymo-narcs-on-kids-allegedly-boozing-and-shooting-gel-blasters-2000782977
Publisher: Gizmodo
Date Published: July 8, 2026
Relevant To: AI/robotaxi passenger surveillance and law-enforcement referral
Verification Status: Verified
Notes: Confirmed via multiple corroborating outlets (Vice, ZeroHedge, ABC7, ABC News, San Mateo PD’s own Facebook post). Two 15-year-olds riding in a Waymo robotaxi in San Mateo, CA, were allegedly drinking alcohol and shooting an Orbeez-style gel blaster out the window. Waymo’s remote operations team viewed the incident via the vehicle’s interior cameras, called police, then remotely disabled the car and told the teens (falsely) it was having mechanical trouble to keep them from leaving before officers arrived — a deliberate ruse, per NBC Bay Area reporting. Because the gel blaster looked like a real gun from a distance, police conducted a high-risk stop with a K-9 unit. Waymo’s policy states support staff “may access live video during a trip” in “urgent circumstances.” Directly relevant to BPA’s surveillance-infrastructure-in-daily-life framing: illustrates that AI-monitored “convenience” services (robotaxis) function as an active, real-time surveillance and law-enforcement-referral system, not passive transportation, and that intervention thresholds are set unilaterally by the company.