You probably shouldn’t hop into a self-driving taxi anytime soon. Waymo is allegedly drafting a new version of its privacy policy that allows interior camera data to be processed for AI training and advertisement purposes.
Waymo is preparing to use data from its robotaxis, including video from interior cameras tied to rider identities, to train generative AI models, according to an unreleased version of its privacy policy found by researcher Jane Manchun Wong.
The draft language reveals Waymo may also share this data to personalize ads, raising fresh questions about how much of a rider’s behavior inside autonomous vehicles could be repurposed for AI training and marketing.
Thankfully, California residents can opt-out of this personal information sharing because of the California Consumer Privacy Act. This process is not as straightforward for other people though.
Since Waymo is not yet making a profit, Alphabet appears to be willing to monetize as much data as possible.
Waymo is, to date, the only autonomous vehicle company pulling in revenue for robotaxi rides in the United States. As of February, the company is logging more than 200,000 paid robotaxi rides every week via its commercial services in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Phoenix, and Austin. That’s up from 10,000 rides per week just two years ago and is a harbinger of more growth as Waymo expands into new markets. The company aims to launch a commercial service in Atlanta, Miami, and Washington, D.C., over the next two years.
Despite these gains, Waymo is still likely a money loser for Alphabet, which might be why the company appears to be exploring other revenue streams, like in-vehicle advertising and data sharing for generative AI models.