GM recalls nearly 1,000 Cruise robotaxis after pedestrian collision

Cruise, the autonomous vehicle company owned by General Motors, has issued a recall for 950 of its robotaxis following a collision with a pedestrian in San Francisco last month, as originally reported by NBC. This move comes after California revoked the company’s driverless permits, requiring a human on-board at all times.

The collision that started all of this occurred on October 2 when a pedestrian was thrown into the path of a Cruise robotaxi after being hit by a human driver. The robotaxi tried to brake aggressively and pull over to the side of the road, but ended up dragging the pedestrian 20 feet before finally stopping.

This triggered a federal probe and several independent investigations into the company, which dredged up some unsavory data. For instance, reports indicate that Cruise’s algorithm had real trouble identifying children. The data also suggests that Cruise knew about this incredibly dangerous blind spot but still kept its vehicles on the streets.

Internal safety documents acquired by The Intercept state that “Cruise AVs may not exercise additional care around children,” and that the robotaxis may “need the ability to distinguish children from adults so we can display additional caution around.” The company responded by touting its safety features, writing in a statement that it has “the lowest risk tolerance for contact with children.”

All of that’s moot now, as Cruise’s robotaxis are being recalled. GM and Cruise have not issued statements as to when and if the cars would return to the streets. GM did announce, however, that it has already lost $1.9 billion on the venture through September of this year, as reported by CNBC.

Rival companies like Google-owned Waymo are still operating driverless vehicles in California and beyond. As a matter of fact, the company just doubled the service area for its robotaxis in San Francisco and Phoenix.