Waymo Vehicles Stall in San Francisco Power Outage, Highlighting Infrastructure Vulnerabilities – Monday, December 22, 2025

A significant power outage in San Francisco recently caused multiple Waymo autonomous vehicles to stall, resulting in a traffic backup and underscoring the heavy reliance of autonomous vehicles on stable infrastructure. This event raises important concerns about the resilience and preparedness of autonomous driving systems within complex urban environments.

Who should care: AI product leaders, ML engineers, data science teams, technology decision-makers, and innovation leaders.

What happened?

A widespread power outage in San Francisco led to several Waymo autonomous vehicles becoming immobilized, which in turn caused a traffic jam that exacerbated the disruption already caused by the outage. This incident highlights the critical dependency of autonomous vehicles on continuous power supply and reliable network connectivity. Waymo’s autonomous vehicles rely on an integrated array of sensors, cameras, and communication systems that require uninterrupted power and data flow to operate safely and effectively. When these systems lose power or connectivity due to infrastructure failures, the vehicles are forced to halt, creating potential safety hazards and traffic congestion. The San Francisco event exposes a vulnerability in current autonomous vehicle technology: the lack of robust fail-safe mechanisms capable of managing sudden infrastructure breakdowns. Moreover, it raises broader questions about the readiness of urban environments—characterized by dense traffic, complex road networks, and variable infrastructure—to support the widespread deployment of autonomous vehicles. As cities push toward integrating these technologies, ensuring that autonomous systems can handle unexpected disruptions will be paramount to maintaining safety and efficiency on the roads.

Why now?

This incident is particularly timely as many cities are accelerating efforts to incorporate autonomous vehicles into their transportation ecosystems. Over the past 18 months, smart city initiatives and advanced mobility technologies have gained momentum, aiming to improve urban transportation efficiency and sustainability. However, the San Francisco outage reveals critical infrastructural weaknesses that could hinder these ambitions. As autonomous vehicle technology advances, the urgency to develop resilient, adaptable systems capable of operating reliably amid infrastructure uncertainties grows. Urban areas, with their complex and often unpredictable infrastructure, present unique challenges that must be addressed to ensure the safe and effective integration of autonomous vehicles.

So what?

The implications of this incident are significant for the autonomous vehicle industry. Strategically, it underscores the urgent need to design and implement more resilient systems that can maintain safe operation despite infrastructure failures. From an operational perspective, it calls for a thorough reassessment of existing fail-safe protocols and the incorporation of redundant backup systems to safeguard vehicle functionality during power or network outages. Additionally, this event highlights the importance of fostering stronger collaboration between technology developers and urban planners to build infrastructure that can reliably support autonomous vehicle deployment. Addressing these challenges proactively will be essential to advancing autonomous mobility while minimizing risks.

What this means for you:

• For AI product leaders: Reevaluate and strengthen the robustness of fail-safe mechanisms within autonomous vehicle systems to better manage infrastructure disruptions.
• For ML engineers: Prioritize developing adaptive algorithms that can respond dynamically to sudden losses in connectivity and power availability.
• For data science teams: Leverage incident data to identify failure patterns and enhance predictive maintenance strategies for autonomous fleets.

Quick Hits

• Impact / Risk: The outage highlights the operational and safety risks tied to autonomous vehicles’ dependence on stable infrastructure.
• Operational Implication: Enhanced fail-safes and backup protocols are essential to ensure continuous AV operation during power and network disruptions.
• Action This Week: Review and update fail-safe protocols; conduct a risk assessment focused on infrastructure dependencies; brief leadership on operational risks and mitigation plans.