Waymo CEO: Camera-only self-driving hits a safety ceiling before it can match humans
Waymo CEO explains why Tesla's camera-only self-driving falls short
Waymo co-CEO Dmitri Dolgov made the case that camera-only self-driving can't achieve full autonomy, arguing that 'weak sensing' leads to a safety curve that flattens out too early. He contrasted Waymo's multi-sensor approach with Tesla's camera-only bet, citing cases where cameras fail, like dust storms and darkness. Dolgov also discussed the 'exponential ladder of nines' and the cost argument, noting Waymo's sixth-gen hardware is getting cheaper. Tesla's robotaxi data shows a crash rate three times worse than humans, while Waymo claims 94% fewer serious-injury crashes.
If the goal were to just approximately match human performance or to build an assist product, that’s a very reasonable way to go. But if you're targeting full autonomy and strongly superhuman performance, you find that weak sensing just leads to a safety curve that flattens out way too early.