During protests in Los Angeles, United States, against President Donald Trump’s immigration policy, protesters set fire to at least five autonomous vehicles from Waymo, a company owned by Alphabet (Google’s parent company), which led to the temporary suspension of the company’s operations in the city.
Although Waymo claims that its cars were not direct targets, the vehicles were parked in areas where the protests took place. Lime scooters were also destroyed.
The demonstrations began after the arrest of 44 immigrants by federal agents and escalated with the arrival of National Guard troops, sent by the White House without the consent of California Governor Gavin Newsom.
The protests, which had already lasted three days, included clashes with police, highway blockades, and graffiti criticizing technology, job losses, and the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Some masked protesters smashed windows, slashed tires, and set fire to the cars using improvised objects. The fires posed a risk due to the release of toxic gases from the vehicles’ batteries, according to local authorities.
President Trump commented on social media, calling the protesters “insurgents” and demanding the arrest of all those wearing masks. He also stated that order would be restored and reinforced his commitment to the deportation of illegal immigrants. Meanwhile, Governor Newsom harshly criticized the presence of federal troops, calling the action an abuse of power.
Waymo, which began operations in Los Angeles at the end of the previous year, had already faced vandalism in other cities, such as San Francisco. Although not yet profitable, the company is considered a leader in autonomous driving technology and has attracted great public interest, with hundreds of thousands of people waiting for access to its ride-hailing app.
Source: CBN / Olhar Digital | Photo: X @sentdefender | This content was created with AI assistance and reviewed by the editorial team
It appears that agitators called several Waymo self-driving autonomous cars to the site of one of the demonstration in Los Angeles, before vandalizing and burning them for absolutely no reason. pic.twitter.com/fnTG9kkuyz
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) June 9, 2025
Waymo is moving their cars out of LA pic.twitter.com/lkpANPwmjx
— Nic Cruz Patane (@niccruzpatane) June 9, 2025
