TechCrunch Mobility: Waymo builds its own security

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Earlier this month, That’s it chief of security Mauricio Pena he testified before the Senate Commerce Committee as part of a hearing on autonomous vehicles.

Most of the questions fell under the “let’s educate people” category. But it was like that Sen. Ed Markey questions about foreign workers, and Peña’s response, which everyone listened to.

Peña, when asked about the workers who help drive Waymo’s vehicles or emergency situations, revealed that the company has control workers based overseas in the Philippines. That quickly drew ire from Mr. Markey, who warned Peña about how the company could rely on people without US driver’s licenses to service its vehicles on US roads, among other criticisms.

Waymo provided an answer in a blog post written by Waymo global operations chief Ryan McNamara, which was published on Tuesday. It has happened again shared the letter it was sent to Marky’s office.

The post and letter provide new information on its remote support services. For example, Waymo emphasizes that it does not employ people who “remotely drive” its robots. Instead, self-driving systems are in charge.

Remote operators (RA) are available to respond to requests for information requested by the Waymo self-driving system. The company also has Emergency Response Teams, or ERTs, people who are certified for the most critical tasks and are based only in the United States. The team responds to collisions, communicates with police and passengers, collects information for traffic reports, and coordinates towing, Waymo says.

We also know that Waymo has “70 remote assistants on duty around the world at all times.” The people live in Arizona, Michigan, and two cities in the Philippines, a detail that has also angered lawmakers.

To give you an idea of ​​what that means, consider that Waymo has 3,000 vehicles and each week its vehicles drive 4 million miles and provide more than 400,000 trips. Therefore, only a few workers are in charge of many robotaxis.

I’ve argued for years that the AV industry needs to do a better job of explaining what happens behind the scenes, especially when it comes to remote control. Many companies, many of which do not exist, have avoided the topic like the plague, perhaps in an effort to make its technology seem more magical and sophisticated. It seems that secrecy breeds mistrust.

As the debate over remote controllers rages on, Waymo continues to push into new markets. With one exception.

New York Governor Kathy Hochul he withdrew a proposal that would have changed the law on cars and trucks successful registration of robotaxis in the suburbs of New York City. Hochul spokesman Sean Butler told me: “Based on discussions with stakeholders, including the legislature, it became clear that support was not available to move this proposal forward.”

One more thing before we jump into the rest of the story. Mobility readers don’t believe the Rivian R2 will be priced at $50,000 or less. Last week, I polled you all and asked: “What will the starting price of the Rivian R2 be?” I offered three options, under $50,000, over $60,000, and over $70,000. More than 54% chose “above $60,000,” with the remaining two ways split on the issue.

To participate in our polls, sign up for the Mobility newsletter Here.

A little bird

Senior reporter Sean O’Kane I heard a lot from other little birds about getting laid off Lucid. Here’s what we know. Lucid is leave 12% of employees, according to an internal memo seen by TechCrunch. We don’t have the exact number of workers affected, but it’s probably in the hundreds.

Lucid did not release its annual revenue for 2025, which would reveal how many employees it will have at the end of the year. The company said it has 6,800 full-time employees worldwide by the end of 2024.

Since starting our report, O’Kane has learned a lot. Affected employees found out on Friday morning, with a few learning that something was wrong when they failed to access Microsoft Teams. He has been placed on “administrative leave” for 60 days and will not be suspended until the end of April.

Do you have a warning for us? Email Kirsten Korosec at kirsten.korosec@techcrunch.com or my Signal at kkorosec.07, or email Sean O’Kane at sean.okane@techcrunch.com.

Sales!

Amari AIa startup that uses AI tools to help marketers adapt and adapt to President Trump’s marketing policies, earned $4.5 million investment led by leading investment firms First Round Capital and Pear VC. The startup is said to have already gathered more than 30 clients and helped these companies move more than $15 billion in assets.

Populaonline used car dealer in Mexico, earned $300 million in interest led by Andreessen Horowitz, who invested $200 million. Other investors included WCM Investment Management, which led the round, and Foxhaven Asset Management.

LanzaJeta leading oil technology company and oil producer, earned $47 million in the first round of the $135 million fine. The company said its pre-fund valuation is $650 million. This was led by IAG and Shell, with participation from Groupe ADP, LanzaTech, and Mitsui.

Metafuelintroduction of sustainable aviation fuel in Switzerland, earned $24 million in the Series A round led by UVC Partners. Other investors included Energy Impact Partners, Contrarian Ventures, RockCreek, Verve Ventures, and Fortescue.

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One thing…

From time to time I test cars for the latest automotive technology, EVs, and hybrids – or software updates to them. Unfortunately, I had Lucid Air Touring sedan this week.

It’s been a year since I was behind the wheel of an Air. And I’ve always wanted to try the industry hands-free driving systems which was launched last July. My previous experience with the driver assistance system, called Dream Drive, has left me unimpressed. My car would often go over the road (meaning it had stability issues) or sit too close to the curb, putting me awkwardly next to the big pieces of equipment I was passing on the highway.

I’m happy to say that Lucid seems to have fixed this. The hands-free operation was straightforward and did not allow me to misuse it for long periods of time. As you can see in the picture above, when I put the phone in front of my face, the alert was activated immediately.