A row of Waymo automobiles burn on a road throughout an anti-ICE protest in downtown Los Angeles, California, on June 8, 2025.
Benjamin Hanson | Afp | Getty Pictures
A number of Waymo autonomous automobiles have been set ablaze in downtown Los Angeles on Sunday amid widespread protests in opposition to President Donald Trump‘s immigration crackdown.
A spokesperson for the Alphabet-owned firm confirmed that 5 Waymo automobiles have been vandalized within the neighborhood of the protests and have been unable to be retrieved. Waymo suspended service within the protest space till it was deemed protected, the spokesperson added.
Waymo responded with steerage from the Los Angeles Police Division, the spokesperson stated.
A Waymo automobile burns on the street as smoke billows throughout protests in Los Angeles, California, on June 8, 2025.
David Pashaee | Afp | Getty Pictures
The protests erupted in downtown LA on Friday after Immigration and Customs Enforcement performed raids within the metropolis and surrounding communities. Demonstrations have been largely peaceable, however tensions flared Saturday and Sunday, with police clashing with protesters close to the Metropolitan Detention Middle in downtown LA.
California Nationwide Guard members arrived within the metropolis on Sunday after Trump signed an order to deploy 2,000 troops in response to the protests. Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom stated the state plans to file a lawsuit in opposition to the Trump administration after it “illegally acted to federalize the Nationwide Guard,” Newsom wrote in a publish Monday on X.
The stays of a burned Waymo automobile on the street following an evening of protests in response to federal immigration operations in Los Angeles, on June 9, 2025.
Frederic J. Brown | Afp | Getty Pictures
In a single photograph, a line of Waymo robotaxis may be seen engulfed in flames, with anti-ICE graffiti scrawled throughout the automobiles’ hoods and doorways. It is unclear whether or not the automobiles have been intentionally focused.
Some folks have been seen tossing Lime e-scooters into the burning Waymo automobiles, the Los Angeles Occasions reported.
A shirtless protester stands atop a Waymo automobile throughout an anti-ICE protest in downtown Los Angeles, California, on June 8, 2025.
Benjamin Hanson | Afp | Getty Pictures
“Burning lithium-ion batteries launch poisonous gases, together with hydrogen fluoride, posing dangers to responders and people close by,” the LAPD stated in an announcement posted on X.
Waymo started providing robotaxi rides throughout 80-plus sq. miles of LA in 2024. The service additionally operates in elements of San Francisco, Phoenix and Austin, Texas.
— CNBC’s Lora Kolodny contributed reporting to this text.
