Waymo's Autonomous Driving Faces Trust Issues
Written by Emily J. Thompson, Senior Investment Analyst
Updated: Feb 17 2026
0mins
Should l Buy GOOG?
Source: Yahoo Finance
- Funding and Valuation: Waymo recently raised $1.6 billion in 2025, achieving a valuation of $126 billion; however, the increasing safety issues the company faces could undermine public trust in its technology.
- Safety Concerns: Waymo's driverless taxis entered active police scenes in Atlanta and Los Angeles, indicating a lack of responsiveness in complex environments, which may lead to public skepticism about their safety.
- School Bus Violations: Waymo was found to have repeatedly failed to stop for school buses in Austin, resulting in a voluntary recall of 2,000 vehicles in December 2023, highlighting critical flaws in its technology in essential safety scenarios.
- Incomplete Accident Data: Although Waymo claims its vehicles are 90% safer than human drivers, experts argue that the data lacks transparency and that the vehicles struggle in routine driving situations, potentially impacting their future market performance.
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Analyst Views on GOOG
Wall Street analysts forecast GOOG stock price to rise
15 Analyst Rating
14 Buy
1 Hold
0 Sell
Strong Buy
Current: 294.900
Low
255.00
Averages
336.08
High
400.00
Current: 294.900
Low
255.00
Averages
336.08
High
400.00
About GOOG
Alphabet Inc. is a holding company. The Company's segments include Google Services, Google Cloud, and Other Bets. The Google Services segment includes products and services such as ads, Android, Chrome, devices, Google Maps, Google Play, Search, and YouTube. The Google Cloud segment includes infrastructure and platform services, collaboration tools, and other services for enterprise customers. Its Other Bets segment is engaged in the sale of healthcare-related services and Internet services. Its Google Cloud provides enterprise-ready cloud services, including Google Cloud Platform and Google Workspace. Google Cloud Platform provides access to solutions such as artificial intelligence (AI) offerings, including its AI infrastructure, Vertex AI platform, and Gemini for Google Cloud; cybersecurity, and data and analytics. Google Workspace includes cloud-based communication and collaboration tools for enterprises, such as Calendar, Gmail, Docs, Drive, and Meet.
About the author
Emily J. Thompson
Emily J. Thompson, a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) with 12 years in investment research, graduated with honors from the Wharton School. Specializing in industrial and technology stocks, she provides in-depth analysis for Intellectia’s earnings and market brief reports.
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See More
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