A burglar used a Waymo to steal yoga clothes in San Francisco — and got away with it

In a bizarre turn of events, a thief employed a Waymo vehicle to commit a robbery at a San Francisco yoga studio this January, and authorities have yet to apprehend the suspect. This unusual incident raises questions about the effectiveness of the surveillance capabilities of Waymo's self-driving cars, particularly in light of growing concerns regarding their role as mobile security monitors. According to a report from the San Francisco Chronicle, the stolen items were yoga clothes from Hot 8 Yoga. Despite Waymo's practice of capturing and storing ride footage, it remains unclear how long this data is retained. By the time police filed a search warrant in April, all relevant footage had vanished. Adding to the complexity of the investigation, police were unable to identify the burglar through external camera footage due to privacy measures that blurred images. Furthermore, the account data provided by Waymo did not aid law enforcement in tracking down the suspect. Security footage from the yoga studio did capture the individual entering, stealing the items, and returning to the robotaxi, but this information alone has not led to any breakthroughs in the case.