Waymo Testing Under Snow

Waymo’s driverless robotaxi operations to date have focused on cities and regions where the weather is predominantly sunny and favourable. However, with the announcement of expansion into Seattle, Denver, New York City and Washington D.C., robotaxis will also be exposed to more challenging weather conditions. In its blog today, Waymo provides an interesting insight into how snow is developed and tested from a hardware and software perspective. Small windscreen wipers on the cameras, heating coils that warm the sensors, and algorithms that can see through snow flurries. But not all snow is the same:

Snow isn’t a single phenomenon—it’s a spectrum of conditions that can affect a human or autonomous driver in multiple ways. Atmospheric conditions can range from a light dusting to a complete whiteout, while road surfaces may be snow-covered or have icy patches, and environmental factors like snow buildup along roadsides add further complexity. For years, we’ve been advancing our system in some of the snowiest conditions across the country —regularly driving in Upstate New York, Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, and the Sierra. We’ve amassed tens of thousands of miles in diverse, snowy conditions. This has allowed the Waymo Driver’s AI to learn from real driving experience and train to navigate a wide range of winter weather.

Driving on icy roads also requires testing and adjustments to the driving algorithms. Waymo subjects its vehicles to intensive safety tests, which the company describes in its Safety Framework.

This article was also published in German.