---
title: "A Waymo Rider Talked Publicly About the Service — Even Though He Wasn’t Supposed To"
description: "## Contract, Schmontract"
date: "2018-12-14"
modified: "2018-12-14"
authors:
  - name: "Kristin Houser"
    link: "https://futurism.com/authors/kristin"
url: "https://futurism.com/waymo-rider-talks-publicly"
categories:
  - "Advanced Transport"
tags:
  - "advanced transportation"
  - "Self-driving cars"
  - "waymo"
---

# A Waymo Rider Talked Publicly About the Service — Even Though He Wasn’t Supposed To

![](<https://futurism.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/waymo-rider-talks-publicly2.jpg>)
*\<em\>Image: Waymo\</em\>*

## Contract, Schmontract

Michael Richardson is one lucky guy.

In mid-September, self-driving car company Waymo accepted the technologist and entrepreneur into its [early rider program](<https://futurism.com/waymo-ride-hailing-service-launching-soon-fully-autonomous-cars>) in Phoenix, Arizona.

Like all riders, Richardson signed a nondisclosure agreement (NDA), a legal contract forbidding him from talking about his experience as a Waymo rider. Now he's getting away with violating that contract, and what he had to say answers several key questions about the service — while leaving many others unanswered.

## Good Guy Waymo

On Wednesday, Richardson agreed to an [interview](<https://arstechnica.com/cars/2018/12/we-finally-talked-to-an-actual-waymo-passenger-heres-what-he-told-us/>) with *Ars Technica*, telling the publication that Waymo had freed him from his NDA. It turns out he was mistaken — Richardson was still legally bound to keep quiet about the rides he'd taken in the company's autonomous vehicles.

Nevertheless, Waymo agreed to let *Ars* run its story. And in a move that surely caused Richardson to breathe a huge sigh of relief, it also promised it wouldn't pursue legal action against him.

## First Impression

That bit of goodwill on the part of Waymo should temper some of the not-so-positive news in the *Ars* story.

As part of the early rider program, Richarson took two round-trip rides with Waymo: one on September 28 and another on October 6. During his interview, the Waymo rider noted multiple limitations with the service, including a small coverage area, a higher cost than Uber and Lyft, and restricted pick-up and drop-off locations. He also claimed his vehicles took longer routes than necessary to avoid a freeway and a tricky left turn.

Perhaps most troubling, he also initially told *Ars* that he saw safety drivers take control of the vehicles on multiple occasions. According to Waymo's records, however, a safety driver only took over once, and Richardson later admitted that he may have misremembered.

## More to Come

Of course, if Richardson got one part of his story wrong, there's a chance the rest of it isn't airtight. He also hasn't ridden with Waymo since it launched its commercial service, [Waymo One](<https://futurism.com/waymo-one-self-driving-taxi-service>), meaning the company could have already worked out some of the kinks he noticed two-plus months ago.

Waymo does plan to [lift the NDA restriction](<https://www.cnet.com/roadshow/news/waymo-one-google-self-driving-car-project/>) on riders who transition to Waymo One, so we should be getting a wider range of views on the company's vehicles in the near future.

Still, this is our first look inside one of Waymo's cars from the perspective of a Waymo rider, and it certainly wasn't all negative.

"I'm impressed by what the vehicle can do and how well it gets around," Richardson told *Ars*. "It's very, very impressive."

**READ MORE:** [We Finally Talked to an Actual Waymo Passenger—here’s What He Told Us](<https://arstechnica.com/cars/2018/12/we-finally-talked-to-an-actual-waymo-passenger-heres-what-he-told-us/>) \[*Ars Technica*\]

***More on Waymo One: [Waymo Has Officially Launched a Self-Driving Taxi Service](<https://futurism.com/waymo-one-self-driving-taxi-service>)***

### Author social links  
[LinkedIn](<https://www.linkedin.com/in/kristinjhouser>)