Google once capped its self-driving Lexus at 25 mph after every employee broke the hands-on-wheel rule
Scobleizer · x · 2026-09-16
Robert Scoble shares a first-hand anecdote from Google's early self-driving days: according to the former Google R&D chief, employees who were given full-size Lexus test cars had to sign contracts agreeing to be fired if they took their hands off the wheel or eyes off the road.
Everyone broke the rule anyway, from the CEO down. Lawyers realized the AI wasn't ready and could kill someone if drivers disengaged, so the cars were capped at 25 mph — fast enough to learn, slow enough that nobody would die. The story also explains why Waymo later built small test vehicles.
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