In Santa Monica, California, an incident occurred involving one of Waymo's autonomous vehicles and a child pedestrian near an elementary school last week during a busy school drop-off period. The child reportedly ran into the street from behind a double-parked SUV and directly into the path of the Waymo robotaxi, which was operating normally at about 17 mph. Waymo's vehicle was able to react quickly, braking hard and reducing speed to under 6 mph before the contact was made. After the incident, the child reportedly stood up immediately and walked to the sidewalk, with no serious injuries observed. The Santa Monica Police Department responded promptly to the scene, indicating that preliminary information suggested the child entered the roadway outside of available crosswalks and away from where a crossing guard was stationed. Following this, the police and local fire department personnel evaluated the situation. Notably, the child’s parent was present during the response, and no injuries were reported. In the aftermath of the incident, Waymo proactively reached out to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to inform them of the mishap, which has led to an investigation on the part of federal regulators. The NHTSA has indicated their desire to fully examine the circumstances surrounding the event. Waymo stated that their technology was able to detect the child as soon as they began to come into view, illustrating a potential safety advantage of their autonomous driving system over human drivers. The company emphasized that if a human driver had been controlling the vehicle, a higher speed of impact could have been expected. According to Waymo's statements, an attentive human driver would have likely hit the child at approximately 14 mph. As part of their continued commitment to road safety, Waymo expressed their intent to enhance their operational safety measures, especially in interaction with pedestrians, as they navigate the public roadways. This incident, while fortunate to result in no serious harm, has raised discussions about the safety of autonomous vehicles, particularly around vulnerable areas like schools, where children may be present and unpredictable in their movements.