My Waymo Ride Through San Francisco Was Mind-Blowing!

What's the Big Deal??

• Completely driverless ride with NO human behind the wheel 🤯
• Self-driving car that navigates SF traffic better than most humans
• Technology that lets you just relax and enjoy the ride
• Mind-blowing peek at how we'll all get around in the near future

The Future Just Pulled Up to My Hotel

I've seen countless tech demos over the years, but nothing quite prepared me for what happened this morning. Standing outside my hotel in San Francisco, I opened the Waymo app, requested a ride to the convention center, and waited. Within minutes, a sleek white Jaguar I-PACE pulled up to the curb—with absolutely no one behind the wheel.

Let me repeat that: no human driver.

As someone who's been waiting for this day for years, I knew this day was coming. But experiencing it firsthand? That's an entirely different story.

Stepping Into Tomorrow

The door unlocked with a gentle click as I approached. Inside, the cabin was immaculate—a clean, minimal design with screens showing my route and an AI assistant ready to answer questions. What struck me most was the bizarre emptiness of the driver's seat. Where a person would normally be sitting, there was just... space.

"Welcome aboard," came a pleasant voice from the speakers. "We're heading to the Moscone Center. Your estimated arrival time is 11:37 AM."

And with that, we were off.

The Ghost Behind the Wheel

The strangest part wasn't the technology itself—it was how quickly it felt normal. As we navigated through downtown San Francisco, I watched in fascination as the steering wheel turned by itself, responding to traffic conditions with a smooth precision.

The Waymo driver (if we can call it that) handled everything with confidence: stopping for pedestrians, yielding to aggressive taxi drivers, smoothly changing lanes when needed. It was simultaneously eerie and reassuring.

What amazed me most was how the vehicle anticipated potential issues before they developed. When a delivery truck ahead started to signal, the Waymo slowed down preemptively, giving it space to pull over. When a cyclist appeared in the bike lane, the car gave them a wide berth.

Safety First

Waymo has built its reputation on safety, and it showed in my ride. The autonomous driver maintained safe following distances, came to complete stops at intersections, and navigated construction zones without hesitation.

What's particularly impressive is Waymo's safety record. In their first million miles of fully autonomous driving, they reported no injuries, no collisions with pedestrians or cyclists, and every vehicle-to-vehicle incident involved rule violations by human drivers.

The Economic Impact

As we cruised through the city, I couldn't help but think about the broader implications. Waymo currently provides more than 250,000 paid trips each week across Phoenix, San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Austin.

The company is expanding rapidly, with plans to bring their autonomous ride-hailing service to Atlanta, Miami, and Washington, D.C. by 2026. This expansion represents a significant shift in urban transportation that could reshape how we think about car ownership, parking infrastructure, and public transit.

The Tariff Question

With all this technological advancement, there's an interesting economic wrinkle developing. President Trump's recent implementation of 25% tariffs on imported cars has raised questions about how this might affect the autonomous vehicle industry.

As reported in Stock-market-chaos-tariffs, these tariffs have already caused significant market chaos and uncertainty for many automotive companies. Interestingly, it's not yet entirely clear how they'll affect services like Waymo.

Waymo seems to be positioning itself strategically in response to these economic pressures. They're investing in American manufacturing with a new autonomous vehicle factory in Metro Phoenix, partnering with Magna to build thousands of Jaguar I-PACEs equipped with their autonomous technology.

Additionally, Waymo recently announced a preliminary agreement with Toyota to explore collaboration on autonomous driving technologies. Such partnerships with major automakers could help Waymo navigate the complex economic landscape created by new tariffs.

While the full impact of these tariffs on the autonomous vehicle industry remains to be seen, companies like Waymo appear to be adapting by focusing on domestic production and strategic partnerships.

The Psychological Shift

Perhaps the most profound aspect of my Waymo ride wasn't the technology itself, but how quickly it rewired my expectations. After just one trip, the idea of a car without a driver no longer seemed like science fiction—it felt inevitable.

Yet public perception remains a challenge. Recent surveys suggest that nearly two-thirds of U.S. drivers are still afraid of autonomous vehicles, with only 13% saying they would trust a fully self-driving vehicle enough to ride in one. My experience suggests this fear might evaporate quickly once people actually experience the technology firsthand.

Arriving at a New Reality

As we pulled up to the convention center, I felt a strange reluctance to exit the vehicle. My short journey had given me a glimpse into a future that's arriving faster than most people realize.

"You have reached your destination," announced the pleasant voice. "Thank you for riding with Waymo."

I stepped out onto the sidewalk feeling like I'd crossed some invisible threshold. Behind me, the white Jaguar pulled away silently, off to pick up its next passenger.

The future of transportation isn't coming—it's already here, quietly revolutionizing our cities one ride at a time. And after experiencing it firsthand, I'm convinced there's no going back.