{"id":"f9afb254-7856-45b9-b570-f0d1333eeaa8","slug":"waymo-atlanta-flood-suspension-2026-05","kind":"malfunction","headline":"Waymo suspended Atlanta robotaxi service after a robotaxi was stuck amid flooding (May 2026)","summary":"In May 2026, Waymo suspended robotaxi operations in Atlanta after at least one robotaxi was reported stuck in the city amid flooding conditions. The suspension was part of a broader effort to address Waymo robotaxis driving into flooded areas, which also affected San Antonio. The company had been working on software to help its fleet avoid flooded areas.","occurredAt":"2026-05-21T00:00:00.000Z","reviewStatus":"reviewed","modelId":"c9a56a6c-55d4-40e3-b080-70a6f04e6956","deploymentId":"61bba43f-6a4a-4cb8-b679-c5a1861e3575","companyId":null,"aliases":[],"collisionRisk":"none","reviewNote":null,"createdAt":"2026-05-26T00:12:17.081Z","updatedAt":"2026-05-26T00:12:40.274Z","model":{"id":"c9a56a6c-55d4-40e3-b080-70a6f04e6956","companyId":"2128addc-20c8-4c31-aef5-be5ada97aede","modelName":"Waymo Driver 6th-gen","slug":"waymo-driver-gen6","description":"The sixth-generation Waymo Driver is Waymo's autonomous driving stack for fully autonomous robotaxi service. The platform integrates 13 cameras, 4 lidars, 6 radars, and external audio receivers, with overlapping 360° coverage and a detection range up to roughly 500 meters in nominal conditions. Compared to the fifth-generation system on the Jaguar I-PACE, the sixth-gen system uses 42% fewer total sensors. Waymo says the per-unit hardware cost is targeted under $20,000 — a more than 50% reduction from the 5th-gen system. Currently runs on the Zeekr RT (sold as the “Ojai” robotaxi, purpose-built without a steering wheel or pedals) and the Hyundai IONIQ 5; began fully autonomous commercial operations in February 2026.","formFactor":"av","maturityStage":"commercial","specs":{"drive_mode":"fully_autonomous","generation":6,"lidar_count":4,"radar_count":6,"camera_count":13,"vehicle_platforms":"Zeekr RT (Ojai); Hyundai IONIQ 5","external_audio_receivers":true,"detection_range_m_nominal_approx":500,"target_unit_cost_usd_under_waymo_stated":20000},"manufacturerSerial":null,"reviewStatus":"reviewed","sources":[{"url":"https://waymo.com/blog/2024/08/meet-the-6th-generation-waymo-driver/","label":"Waymo blog — Meet the 6th-generation Waymo Driver (primary announcement, sensor suite + cost targets)","publishedAt":"2024-08-19"},{"url":"https://waymo.com/blog/2026/02/ro-on-6th-gen-waymo-driver/","label":"Waymo blog — Beginning fully autonomous operations with the 6th-gen Driver (primary, commercial launch)","publishedAt":"2026-02-12"},{"url":"https://www.cnbc.com/2026/02/12/waymo-begins-deploying-next-gen-ojai-robotaxis-to-extend-its-us-lead.html","label":"CNBC — Waymo begins deploying next-gen Ojai robotaxis (third-party trade coverage of the launch)","publishedAt":"2026-02-12"},{"url":"https://www.wardsauto.com/news/archive-auto-waymo-6th-generation-driver-autonomous-driving-hardware-robotaxi-lidar-ai/725519/","label":"WardsAuto — Inside the 6th-generation Waymo Driver (third-party deep-dive on the hardware suite)","publishedAt":"2024-08-29"}],"aliases":[],"collisionRisk":"low","reviewNote":null,"createdAt":"2026-05-25T04:41:57.633Z","updatedAt":"2026-05-25T19:43:05.059Z"},"deployment":{"id":"61bba43f-6a4a-4cb8-b679-c5a1861e3575","modelId":"c9a56a6c-55d4-40e3-b080-70a6f04e6956","versionId":null,"locationId":"263675db-eb2c-442b-9cd0-ee7c85d55eee","operatorId":null,"ownerId":null,"slug":"waymo-driver-gen6-atlanta","status":"paused","firstSeen":null,"manufacturerSerial":null,"reviewStatus":"reviewed","sources":[{"url":"https://techcrunch.com/2026/05/21/waymo-halts-freeway-rides-after-robotaxis-struggle-in-construction-zones/","label":"Extracted by /admin/extract (awaiting human review)","title":"Extracted by /admin/extract (awaiting human review)","mediaType":"article","sourceName":"machine-extracted","publishedAt":"2026-05-21"}],"notes":null,"reviewNote":null,"createdAt":"2026-05-26T00:02:43.861Z","updatedAt":"2026-05-26T00:06:34.625Z"},"company":null,"derived":{"status":"active"},"sources":[{"id":"98df98d2-4871-4d21-8412-0542fb495a5f","incidentId":"f9afb254-7856-45b9-b570-f0d1333eeaa8","url":"https://techcrunch.com/2026/05/21/waymo-pauses-atlanta-service-as-its-robotaxis-keep-driving-into-floods/","label":"TechCrunch — Waymo pauses Atlanta service as robotaxis keep driving into floods","publishedAt":"2026-05-21T00:00:00.000Z","notes":null,"title":"TechCrunch — Waymo pauses Atlanta service as robotaxis keep driving into floods","sourceName":"TechCrunch","mediaType":"article","videoId":null,"channel":null,"durationSec":null,"timestampSec":null,"createdAt":"2026-05-26T00:12:17.237Z","updatedAt":"2026-05-26T00:12:17.237Z"},{"id":"8c4f3ce6-3f5b-46fd-abed-7e3ba05d03ca","incidentId":"f9afb254-7856-45b9-b570-f0d1333eeaa8","url":"https://techcrunch.com/2026/05/21/waymo-halts-freeway-rides-after-robotaxis-struggle-in-construction-zones/","label":"TechCrunch — Atlanta suspension referenced in freeway-suspension coverage","publishedAt":"2026-05-21T00:00:00.000Z","notes":null,"title":"TechCrunch — Atlanta suspension referenced in freeway-suspension coverage","sourceName":"TechCrunch","mediaType":"article","videoId":null,"channel":null,"durationSec":null,"timestampSec":null,"createdAt":"2026-05-26T00:12:17.394Z","updatedAt":"2026-05-26T00:12:17.394Z"}],"responses":[{"id":"eef2ccc1-9611-4162-ab25-34d8a988ef4d","incidentId":"f9afb254-7856-45b9-b570-f0d1333eeaa8","respondentName":"Waymo","respondentRole":"operator","body":"Waymo suspended Atlanta operations to address flooding-related performance issues, following its earlier San Antonio pause and recall.","respondedAt":"2026-05-21T00:00:00.000Z","provenance":{"tier":"reported","assertedBy":{"name":"Waymo","entityId":"2128addc-20c8-4c31-aef5-be5ada97aede"},"confidence":0.9,"reportedVia":{"url":"https://techcrunch.com/2026/05/21/waymo-halts-freeway-rides-after-robotaxis-struggle-in-construction-zones/","title":"Waymo halts freeway rides; Atlanta paused after flooding","sourceName":"TechCrunch","publishedAt":"2026-05-21"}},"createdAt":"2026-05-26T00:12:17.552Z"}],"statusEvents":[]}