• by fnordpiglet on 4/17/2025, 12:45:01 AM

    My theory is once the novelty wears off and the high tech jaguar carriage is eating margins, public robo taxis will be about as fun to ride in as a public toilet. The lack of a person and the social pressure that implies (and legal protections) means people will do just about anything in the robotaxi. Cameras and deplatforming will work for a while but it’ll turn into more an accumulation of small things - spilled drinks, garbage left behind - then eventually it’ll be a race to the bottom where most people ride in relative filth while people continue to private cars because they want to avoid sitting in semen stains.

  • by neilv on 4/16/2025, 11:20:08 PM

    A little bit funny, these two adjacent paragraphs:

    > Anyone who gets in the Waymo and sees the note “can feel this emotion of surprise, joy or inspiration” at seeing someone putting themself out there in an unorthodox way, [dating coach Joyce] Zhang said, potentially prompting riders to ask themselves: “What can I do to put myself out there in the world?”

    > The 26-year-old single man did not respond to a reporter’s text and voicemail seeking comment.

    Being hounded by a Washington Post reporter wasn't the world out into which he lightheartedly intended to put himself.

  • by _bin_ on 4/16/2025, 10:05:18 PM

    Great, WaPo mentioned it, now it's dead and no longer fun and will be overused.

    Why can't journos leave anything alone man

  • by buggy6257 on 4/14/2025, 2:45:25 AM

  • by Animats on 4/16/2025, 9:45:23 PM

    Soon, ads on screens in Waymos? Probably. Has Google ever resisted the temptation to put ads on something?

  • by themanmaran on 4/16/2025, 9:56:40 PM

    Using robo-taxies to pass notes like a message in a bottle.

    Not the future I expected, but honestly sounds like a fun little experiment.

  • by skulk on 4/14/2025, 4:36:38 AM

    Provably shouldn't have included that dude's phone number in the photo of his note.

  • by hulitu on 4/15/2025, 6:23:03 AM

    > Tech workers are leaving notes in robot taxis seeking workers and lovers

    Like toilet notes ? Dirty message + phone number ?

  • by comrade1234 on 4/16/2025, 9:40:05 PM

    Sounds like the perfect example that human touch is dead.

  • by catlikesshrimp on 4/16/2025, 9:58:16 PM

    It hadn't ocurred waymo to add a page to the T&C about what Past, present or Future communication can occur in the cab.

  • by xyst on 4/16/2025, 11:13:00 PM

    This is like writing on the walls of a public bathroom stall.

  • by egypturnash on 4/17/2025, 2:34:57 AM

    Mini BBS tied to each taxi in the Waymo app in 3… 2… 1…

  • by Supermancho on 4/17/2025, 4:36:21 PM

    This stinks of publicity stunt. Employers and dating via robocars? I don't believe it at all.