Top executives at Tesla and Waymo defended the safety of their driverless systems before a Senate committee amid recent incidents and growing scrutiny.
Lawmakers pressed the companies after viral videos and local complaints raised concerns about robotaxis and advanced driver-assistance systems. Waymo, which operates robotaxis in six U.S. cities with plans to expand to more, has faced several high-profile episodes: a vehicle in Phoenix ended up on light-rail tracks, and Austin robotaxis have accumulated multiple tickets for not yielding to school buses. In Santa Monica, a Waymo vehicle struck a young girl who the company says darted out from behind a parked car; she suffered minor injuries after the vehicle braked. Waymo’s head of safety said the company has made software changes to improve performance and argued its systems are safer than human drivers, noting that Waymo vehicles are far less likely to be involved in serious crashes than human-operated cars.
Senator Ed Markey sent letters to several autonomous-vehicle companies seeking answers on safety and oversight. He is pushing measures to increase industry transparency and to require companies to certify where and how their vehicles can be driven safely so there is accountability to an established standard. Other senators, including Commerce Committee Chairman Ted Cruz, urged a uniform federal standard for the technology rather than a patchwork of 50 state rules, saying consistent rules would better protect lives and support safe development.
Tesla leaders likewise testified, defending their approach to driver-assist and “Full Self-Driving” features. Lawmakers probed how the company markets those systems and the safeguards in place, particularly after crashes and state inquiries. Tesla and Waymo both stressed ongoing improvements and internal testing, and warned about global competition, noting China’s growing role in autonomous-vehicle development.
The hearing focused on how to balance innovation and expansion with public safety: lawmakers sought clearer data, stronger oversight, and enforceable standards. Companies said their systems reduced crash risk compared with typical human driving but acknowledged the need to respond to incidents and public concerns as deployment scales up.