In January, a Waymo car was torn apart in Los Angeles. In February 2024, another Waymo car was smashed and set ablaze in San Francisco. And in July 2024, a man was charged with slashing the tires of 17 Waymo cars in San Francisco.

Now electric, driverless vehicles have been summoned to protest scenes via the Waymo app. The resulting EV fires burn hotter than traditional car fires and are potentially more hazardous. The autonomous robot taxis owned by Google parent company Alphabet were tagged with protest slogans and profanity—and set on fire—as a way to disrupt traffic over the weekend and demonstrate against the widespread roundup of migrants by Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers.

Waymo suspended part of its service in downtown Los Angeles after multiple cars were set on fire during anti-ICE protests.