Waymo lawsuits fall into a few distinct groups: a landmark trade secret case against Uber, personal injury suits from people hit by or riding in its robotaxis, permit and nuisance fights with local governments, and a running series of federal safety investigations and recalls tied to how its vehicles handle poles, barriers, school buses, and flooded roads. The company, owned by Alphabet, has been both plaintiff and defendant, and the legal pressure has grown as its driverless fleet has expanded across California, Arizona, and Texas.
The Uber Trade Secret Case
Waymo’s most consequential lawsuit was the one it filed, not one filed against it. After Anthony Levandowski, a technical lead on Google’s self-driving car project, left in 2016 to start the self-driving truck company Otto, Uber acquired Otto that same year. Waymo alleged Levandowski had downloaded more than 14,000 confidential files, including LIDAR circuit board designs, before his departure, and that Uber bought Otto knowing those files existed.1Harvard Journal of Law & Technology. Waymo v. Uber: Surprise Settlement Five Days Into Trial
The case settled five days into trial on February 9, 2018. Uber agreed to pay Waymo 0.34% of its equity, valued at roughly $245 million at the time, and promised not to use Waymo’s confidential information in its autonomous vehicle work. Waymo had sought $500 million in equity before trial. The settlement made Waymo an Uber shareholder.1Harvard Journal of Law & Technology. Waymo v. Uber: Surprise Settlement Five Days Into Trial
Levandowski’s own troubles continued. Federal prosecutors charged him with 33 counts of trade secret theft in 2019. He pleaded guilty to one count, and in August 2020 U.S. District Judge William Alsup sentenced him to 18 months in prison, a $95,000 fine, and $756,499 in restitution to Waymo. Judge Alsup called it “the biggest trade secret crime I have ever seen.”2U.S. Department of Justice. Former Uber Executive Sentenced to 18 Months in Jail for Trade Secret Theft From Google Levandowski never reported to prison because his sentence was postponed indefinitely during the COVID-19 pandemic.3San Jose Inside. Trump Pardons Silicon Valley Engineer Convicted of Stealing Google’s Trade Secrets On January 20, 2021, President Donald Trump granted him a full pardon.4CNBC. Anthony Levandowski Pardoned After Stealing Trade Secrets From Google
The San Francisco Cyclist Case
In June 2025, cyclist Jenifer Hanki sued Waymo and Alphabet in San Francisco County Superior Court over a February 16, 2025 collision. According to the complaint, Hanki was riding in a marked bike lane on Seventh Street when a Waymo robotaxi carrying four passengers pulled over next to a “no-stopping” sign. As she passed, a passenger opened the rear door, striking her and knocking her into the path of a second Waymo vehicle that was also entering the bike lane.5San Francisco Chronicle. S.F. Cyclist Sues Waymo After Being Doored by Robotaxi
The suit alleges battery, negligence, emotional distress, and strict product liability. Its central claim is that Waymo’s “Safe Exit” system, designed to detect nearby cyclists and pedestrians and warn passengers before they open a door, failed to issue any alert.5San Francisco Chronicle. S.F. Cyclist Sues Waymo After Being Doored by Robotaxi Hanki reports a brain injury, spine damage, and soft tissue injuries, and is seeking compensatory and punitive damages before a jury.6Bay Area Bicycle Law. Bay Area Bicycle Law Files Lawsuit Against Waymo and Alphabet After San Francisco Bike Lane Collision The case is active.
The Santa Monica Charging Station Fight
Waymo and the City of Santa Monica sued each other in late 2025 over two electric vehicle charging facilities at Euclid Street and Broadway, operated with Waymo’s charging partner Voltera. Santa Monica ordered Waymo to stop overnight operations, calling the sites a public nuisance and pointing to more than 40 resident complaints about beeping noise and light pollution overnight, in what the city said were violations of municipal noise and light codes.7KFI AM 640. Waymo Sues Santa Monica Over Charging Station Dispute
Waymo countersued in Los Angeles County Superior Court in December 2025. The company argued that the operations are not a public nuisance and that Santa Monica had approved the Voltera permits knowing the sites were meant for 24-hour commercial fleet charging. Waymo proposed software updates and other noise-mitigation measures, but talks broke down before the city filed suit.7KFI AM 640. Waymo Sues Santa Monica Over Charging Station Dispute Residents have reportedly blocked Waymo vehicles from entering the facilities on multiple occasions, prompting police responses.8Planetizen. Waymo Sues Santa Monica Over Attempt to Ban Them From Overnight Charging Stations The litigation is active.
Federal Safety Investigations and Recalls
Waymo has faced repeated attention from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and has issued several voluntary software recalls.
Pole and Barrier Collisions
In May 2024, a Waymo vehicle struck a telephone pole in a Phoenix alleyway while trying to pull over for a passenger. The company traced the problem to its software’s inability to assess pole hazards where curbs and shoulders were unclear, and recalled 672 Jaguar I-Pace vehicles in June 2024.9CNN. Waymo Recalls Driverless Cars After Pole Collision That same month, NHTSA opened preliminary evaluation PE24016 into the 5th Generation automated driving system after 22 reported incidents, including collisions with stationary objects, parked vehicles, gates, and chains, plus vehicles disobeying traffic signals or driving in opposing lanes. Seventeen of the incidents were crashes; none produced reported injuries.10NHTSA. PE24016 Investigation Resume NHTSA closed the probe in July 2025, finding no systemic safety violations and crediting Waymo’s voluntary recalls and disclosures.11Husch Blackwell. NHTSA Closes Waymo Investigation: Key Takeaways for the AV Industry
In May 2025, Waymo recalled 1,212 vehicles (recall 25E-034) over a software defect that caused its system to miss thin or semi-stationary objects such as chains and gates. The defect had been linked to at least 16 collisions between December 2022 and 2024, and a fleet-wide software update had already been deployed by December 26, 2024.12CBS News. Waymo Recalls Vehicles Over Software That Caused Crashes
School Bus Violations
Texas officials reported that Waymo vehicles illegally passed stopped school buses with flashing red lights and extended stop arms at least 19 times after the start of the 2025–2026 school year.13Reuters. US Safety Board Opens Probe Into Waymo Robotaxis Passing Stopped School Buses The cause was an August 2025 software update that made the system prioritize not impeding a school bus over actually obeying school bus traffic laws, so in some scenarios a vehicle would slow, stop, and then proceed past a bus with active signals.14NHTSA. Recall Report 25E084
NHTSA opened a preliminary evaluation in October 2025. In December 2025, Waymo filed recall 25E-084 covering 3,067 vehicles, with a fix deployed to all of them by November 17, 2025.15CBS News. Waymo Recalls 3,000 Vehicles Over Software That Passed School Buses Even after the update, the Austin Independent School District reported five more illegal passing incidents to NHTSA and asked Waymo to suspend operations near schools during pickup and dropoff. Waymo refused.13Reuters. US Safety Board Opens Probe Into Waymo Robotaxis Passing Stopped School Buses
The National Transportation Safety Board opened a formal investigation in January 2026. It centers on a January 12, 2026 incident in which a Waymo vehicle passed a stopped Austin ISD school bus after a remote assistance agent in Novi, Michigan wrongly determined the bus did not have active signals.16NTSB. HWY26FH007 Investigation Page The NTSB later expanded the probe to a March 25, 2026 violation and two early-March 2026 incidents in which Waymo vehicles stopped past lowered railroad crossing gates.17CBS Austin. NTSB Adds Latest Waymo School Bus Incident to Growing Investigation
Flooded Roadway Recall
On April 20, 2026, an empty Waymo robotaxi drove into a flooded road section in San Antonio during severe weather. The vehicle detected the water but slowed instead of stopping. Waymo applied an interim fleet-wide fix the same day restricting operations in flash-flood-prone areas during intense rain, and filed recall 26E026 in late April 2026 covering 3,791 vehicles. A permanent software remedy is still in development.18ABC7 News. Waymo Recalls 3,500 Vehicles After Incident Involving Robotaxi Entering Flooded Texas Road
How Liability Works in a Waymo Crash Case
California, where Waymo does most of its business, uses “pure comparative negligence,” meaning courts can assign percentages of fault across multiple parties in a single accident. Plaintiffs in Waymo cases have pursued negligence, strict product liability (arguing the vehicle itself is defective), battery, and intentional infliction of emotional distress.19Courthouse News Service. Cyclist Sues Waymo
Waymo’s vehicles are classified as Level 4 autonomous, operating without a human driver inside their approved geographic area, so the analysis differs from driver-assist cases. Legal scholars have debated whether courts should apply a “reasonable human driver” standard or a “reasonable computer driver” standard tied to industry benchmarks.20Brookings Institution. Setting the Standard of Liability for Self-Driving Cars In practice, fault can reach beyond the manufacturer to software developers, maintenance providers, passengers who misuse safety systems, and government entities responsible for road infrastructure.
California added specific obligations under Assembly Bill 1777, effective July 1, 2026. Law enforcement can issue a “notice of AV noncompliance” directly to the manufacturer for moving violations by a driverless vehicle, closing an enforcement gap that had limited citations to human drivers. The California DMV reviews reported incidents and can restrict or suspend a manufacturer’s operating permit for repeated noncompliance. The law requires AV companies to respond to emergency officials within 30 seconds and imposes penalties for entering active emergency zones.21Los Angeles Times. California Can Ticket Robotaxis That Violate Traffic Laws Manufacturers must notify the DMV within 72 hours of receiving a noncompliance notice, and the DMV keeps standing authority to suspend testing and deployment permits when vehicles pose an unreasonable risk to public safety.22BBC News. California Allows Police to Ticket Autonomous Vehicles Waymo spokesperson Julia Ilina said the company’s vehicles are already subject to “close, ongoing oversight” and are “designed to respect the rules of the road.”