# Waymo 696 Hacker News commenters recommended Waymo and 456 criticized it, November 2025 to November 2026. It was recommended in 12 of 13 months; owners who said how long report a median of 1 years (8 owners). **Verdict:** Recommended for crash data showing far fewer injuries than human drivers and for confident, predictable rides, though critics cite overly slow driving, blocked traffic and privacy worries. ## Why people recommend it - Safer than human drivers (9 comments): "Waymo is operating at a much larger scale across a huge range of conditions with hardware that's generations behind their latest and still performing better." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46128269)) "Waymos have driven so many miles by this point, if they are hiding some data that would tip the scales back towards human drivers I have yet to see it." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47447103)) "they've cleared every conceivable statistical hurdle to conclusively demonstrating that they are better than humans on injuries and airbag deployments" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47446761)) - Confident, impressive driving (3 comments): "Insanely impressive. Dealt with traffic, ride share drivers randomly blocking lanes, people/bikes/scooters dashing into the path and more. All went flawlessly." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48286353)) "they've been much more aggressive in the ways that make a good driver a good driver - confident and assertive when they should be" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47446454)) "I used one last time I was in Silicon Valley and I was super impressed with its driving. Very confident and felt super safe." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49176249)) - Predictable around pedestrians and cyclists (3 comments): "Riding a motorcycle or even a bicycle around Waymos feels surprisingly safer. You can reliably predict so many things about how it will behave" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47448334)) "Waymos do this and have for years. They know where the people are around them and will take precautionary action based on that." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46818440)) "waymo slowing down and that kid surviving a crash after jumping on the road from behind a tall vehicle was the best PR waymo could have asked for" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46922212)) - No human driver to fear (2 comments): "every woman in our office always agrees they will choose waymo over uber every time, due to the lack of (presumably male) driver" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49177396)) "This honestly seems pretty ideal. In a dangerous situation, the only risk is property damage - there's no driver to threaten!" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48824852)) ## What people warn about - Overly slow, conservative driving (3 comments): "inexplicably going 20 in a 35 with no one in front of it for nearly a mile. I loathe these things, they're like automated drunk drivers." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46865424)) "These systems were programmed to fall bad into "terrified 16yo/elderly lady" behavior because that's what's most legally defensible." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46356003)) "Waymo is overly conservative last time I checked. Driving the speed limit basically means getting to your destination twice as slow." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=45903093)) - Blocks traffic and emergency vehicles (2 comments): "I’ve seen many ambulances get blocked just seconds away from the hospital because of Waymos unable to navigate complex intersections" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47990310)) "force the driver in the actual rightmostlane to break to allow it to merge else it would have caused an accident as there was no lane in front of it" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47630985)) - Premier subscription seen as poor value (3 comments): "A moderately expensive subscription service that simply provides priority access to something you're otherwise already paying good money for." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48497847)) "How is this useful in any way? by definition it's a subscription for people already using the service in the (few) supported cities." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48493101)) "the extra $30/mo for the small convenience of getting priority and being able to cancel a few rides could be seen as “cheap” by comparison" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48495277)) - In-car camera privacy concerns (2 comments): "given the spotless record of these sorts of companies in zealously guarding our privacy it would be unthinkable that Waymos is listening in to our conversations" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=50175460)) "Yea you get "privacy" in a car kitted with the most advanced 360 degree camera system in the interior and exterior of the vehicle." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48505594)) ## Alternatives hackers recommend - [Tesla Robotaxi](https://hackerapproved.com/p/tesla-robotaxi.md): 41 recommend - [Waymo Driver](https://hackerapproved.com/p/waymo-driver.md): 23 recommend - [Tesla Cybercab](https://hackerapproved.com/p/tesla-cybercab.md): 21 recommend ## Where to get it - [Visit the official site](https://waymo.com/) ## Cite as Hacker Approved, "Waymo", https://hackerapproved.com/p/waymo/ (counts from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026).