by namanyayg on 6/14/25, 4:44 PM with 123 comments
by steelframe on 6/14/25, 7:11 PM
The Waymo rides were near-perfect. At one point when a delivery truck was blocking 3 lanes, the vehicle assertively merged over into the free lane to get around. A couple of people on e-bikes were all over the place, but at no point did I feel that the vehicle put them in any kind of danger. Starts, stops, and turns were all smooth. End-to-end time was good, the ride itself was comfortable, and the price was reasonable.
On the other hand the Uber driver picked me up in a Tesla that had regen cranked up. They continually accelerated and decelerated the entire way to the airport, rocking the car back and forth the whole time, as if it were a nervous habit to continually press and release the accelerator or something. I felt sick by the time we got to my terminal.
For me at this point, technology like Waymo can't carpet every metropolitan area quickly enough.
One caveat: I should be able to use it (and, hence, pay for it) anonymously.
by gonzalohm on 6/14/25, 6:09 PM
On the way back I ordered an Uber, one driver cancelled the drive, the other started driving in the other direction, possibly using multiple car sharing apps and finishing another ride.
I ended up cancelling and requesting a Waymo. It may not be perfect but at least it comes when requested
by majormajor on 6/14/25, 7:44 PM
I don't have a strong opinion yet on the long-term viability of Waymo (or any other competitor) because I think we need to see two things:
* what will the cars look like in 3 years? 5?
* will autonomous tech and supporting infra (like cheap automated parking in sparse parts of cities for cars to stay when not in use) make its way into consumer products at a low enough price point, leading to heavy Waymo users turning into vehicle owners instead? This was one of the issues with the scooter/e-bike rental market.
by ENGNR on 6/14/25, 9:31 PM
If someone could automate wheeling the food a few dozen metres from a restaurant kitchen to a table next it would be perfect :)
by moomoo11 on 6/14/25, 7:09 PM
The last time was when I could take photos on my phone that were as good enough as lugging around a Dslr.
There have been good products and services in between don’t get me wrong. But none of them instantly blew me away like those.
by muglug on 6/14/25, 6:38 PM
I bet that’s a reflection of a large “anyone-but-Uber” contingent stemming from the Travis Kalanick days.
by jaredhallen on 6/14/25, 6:32 PM
by ChrisArchitect on 6/14/25, 7:53 PM
Waymo rides cost more than Uber or Lyft and people are paying anyway
by lvl155 on 6/14/25, 8:17 PM
by emilsedgh on 6/14/25, 6:14 PM
I use Waymo's all the time. There are still some quirks they need to figure out and polish the experience, but it really is happening and it appears that Uber's head is in the sands or I'm missing something here.
by standardUser on 6/14/25, 6:14 PM
A lot to unpack there, but it does act as a reminder that most people have been highly critical of the rideshare business model, considering these jobs to be profoundly unfair an unsustainable for drivers. So it comes off as disingenuous to hear claims that we're going to lose an important working class profession. No, we're going to lose a profession that, outside of the densest cities, never made economic sense in the 21st century. It's a profession we want to see disappear. Not that it entirely matters considering that consumers are inevitably going to choose the cheaper, safer option regardless of which jobs may be at stake.