UNSC ALERT: Rogue Robotaxis Threaten Civilian Population!

Another One Bites the Dust (Again)!

Alright Spartans listen up. Looks like we've got a situation brewing back on Earth. This isn't the Covenant but it might be just as annoying. Amazon's Zoox those fancy robotaxis everyone's been talking about have recalled their software. Again. Seems like these metalheads can't tell a scooter from a Warthog. An unoccupied Zoox robotaxi turning at low speed was struck by an e scooter rider after braking to yield at an intersection. Thankfully the guy on the scooter is alright just some minor bumps and bruises. But still this is getting out of hand.

When Good Bots Go Bad!

Zoox is saying that the robotaxi was stopped at the time of contact. The e scooterist fell to the ground directly next to the vehicle. The robotaxi then began to move and stopped after completing the turn but did not make further contact with the e scooterist. Yeah right. Like a Grunt telling me he took down a Spartan. I'm not buying it. Zoox submitted a voluntary software recall report to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. They're recalling 270 vehicles so at least they're trying to fix things. But this isn't the first time remember? This has happened more than twice now. Wake me when you need me.

NHTSA Says: "Be Careful Out There Civilian!"

The NHTSA is warning everyone to be cautious around these things. Apparently these autonomous vehicles might incorrectly predict the path of a cyclist or scooter rider or just stop randomly. Sounds like someone needs a serious software update or maybe a plasma grenade to the CPU. If an autonomous vehicle continues to move after contact with any nearby vulnerable road user it risks causing harm or further harm. No kidding! That's like saying a Hunter won't charge you if you stand still. Not a risk I'm willing to take.

Deja Vu: The Ghost of Robotaxis Past!

Remember that Cruise robotaxi incident? One of their vehicles injured a pedestrian who had been struck by a human driven car and was then rolled over by the Cruise AV. Yeah not a good look. And just two weeks ago Zoox had another software recall after a crash in Las Vegas. An unoccupied Zoox robotaxi collided with a passenger vehicle resulting in minor damage to both vehicles. They issued a software recall for 270 of its robotaxis in order to address a defect with its automated driving system that could cause it to inaccurately predict the movement of another car increasing the "risk of a crash."

The Billion Dollar Bet Gone Sideways?

Amazon bought Zoox back in 2020 for over a billion dollars thinking they'd bring autonomous ride hailing to life. Well looks like they're still in the testing phase. Meanwhile Alphabet's Waymo is already running driverless services in a bunch of cities. And Tesla's promising their robotaxis are coming next month. Maybe they should call Cortana for some help with the code. She's got better multitasking skills than any AI I've seen.

Chief's Take: Proceed With Caution!

So Spartans here's the deal. These robotaxis are still a work in progress. They're not quite ready for prime time. If you see one give it some space. And maybe keep a plasma pistol handy just in case. We've faced worse threats than malfunctioning software but it's always good to be prepared. As always stay frosty and watch your six. Chief out.