Waymo is positioning its new Ojai robotaxi as an aspirational lifestyle product with help from Martha Stewart, but a hidden safety issue is emerging: test drivers are sustaining injuries from hard braking and sudden autonomous vehicle movements. More than two dozen test drivers for Waymo and Zoox reported injuries in 2024 and 2025, according to Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) data reviewed by TechCrunch, raising questions about the human cost of scaling autonomous vehicle operations.

What Is Waymo's New Ojai Vehicle, and Why Is Martha Stewart Promoting It?

On Thursday, Waymo announced a social media campaign featuring Martha Stewart, the 85-year-old lifestyle icon, touring the Ojai as if it were one of her own homes. In a 52-second video inspired by Architectural Digest's "Open Door" series, Stewart praises the vehicle's "excellent architecture and curb appeal," jokes that there are no keys to hand over, and invites viewers to "make yourself comfortable and enjoy the ride".

The Ojai is Waymo's first vehicle designed specifically for autonomous ride-hailing rather than adapted from an existing passenger car. Built by Chinese EV manufacturer Zeekr and outfitted with Waymo's technology in Mesa, Arizona, it resembles a compact passenger van with elevator-like sliding doors, a completely flat floor, and space for up to four passengers. The vehicle includes embedded braille, screen-reader compatibility, and a seat-integrated support handle to address accessibility needs.

Stewart's endorsement extends Waymo's strategy of positioning itself within entertainment and lifestyle culture. The company has previously partnered with musicians like Saweetie and Julia Michaels, placed custom-wrapped vehicles in music videos, and announced partnerships with Las Vegas' Allegiant Stadium and The Venetian Resort. By enlisting Stewart, Waymo is attempting to recast the robotaxi not simply as a transportation technology but as an aspirational personal space.

"This is the future. I'm all about the future. I don't live in the past," Stewart said, noting that her interest in autonomous vehicles began with science fiction she read and watched during the 1960s.

Martha Stewart, Lifestyle Icon and Entrepreneur

What Are the Key Features That Make Ojai Different From Traditional Taxis?

Stewart was unsparing in her criticism of traditional yellow cabs, describing them as putting passengers "in a crowded back seat behind a glass barrier with few amenities." The Ojai, by contrast, offers sliding doors that open at the touch of a finger, unobstructed space, and screens within easy view of passengers. The vehicle includes three screens: one in front and two positioned in the rear, with displays that adapt to occupied seats and give the nearest rider full control. Riders can start the trip, reposition passenger seats, and set the temperature through a screen or the Waymo app.

The cabin is designed to function as productive space. With no human driver, passengers have the rear cabin "all to yourself," according to Jackie Hyun, Waymo's head of marketing. A linked Spotify account can follow a rider into the vehicle, and YouTube Music is also integrated. The Ojai's trunk, additional legroom, and "party space" make it particularly suited to airport trips and small groups, especially in Los Angeles, where hours spent crossing the city can become part of the working day.

How Does Waymo's Autonomous System Actually Work Inside the Ojai?

Two distinct artificial intelligence (AI) systems operate inside the Ojai. The sixth-generation Waymo Driver is the purpose-built autonomous-driving AI that controls the vehicle. It uses 13 cameras, four lidar units, six radar units, and onboard computing to perceive the road and perform the entire driving task. The sensors provide overlapping fields of view extending as far as one-third of a mile, with heaters, wipers, and cleaning systems designed to keep them functioning through undesirable road conditions, including snow and grime. Waymo says the newer system costs less than its fifth-generation predecessor while delivering greater resolution, range, and computing power.

Gemini, Google's conversational AI assistant, is an optional feature for passengers. It can answer general questions, provide information about the trip and nearby locations, adjust cabin controls, or request that the vehicle pull over. Critically, Gemini operates separately from the Waymo Driver and cannot steer, alter the route, or access the Driver's real-time driving data. Waymo says Gemini does not retain riders' audio, though it may keep written transcripts to evaluate and improve the assistant.

What Injuries Are Test Drivers Experiencing?

Behind the polished marketing campaign, a troubling pattern is emerging in the data. Transdev, which employs and manages Waymo's test drivers, reported 16 injuries tied to Waymo depot locations in three cities (San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Phoenix) that were caused by the autonomous software braking hard or swerving suddenly. Zoox reported as many as eight worker injuries linked to hard braking. These test drivers, who put autonomous vehicles through their paces on public roads, have suffered sprains, strains, whiplash, and more, with some sidelined for weeks or months.

The injuries increased dramatically as Waymo scaled its operations. Transdev reported five Waymo test driver injuries in 2024 across the three markets. In one case, a test driver reported that the car "suddenly backed up" while parking itself and "whipped the steering wheel," catching his left hand and bending it "to the point he heard a crack in his wrist." The employee spent more than two months away from work as a result. The number of injuries jumped to 11 in those three markets in 2025, and hard braking was the cause of nearly all of them.

Last September, a test driver in Phoenix wound up having to spend 157 days away from work after their vehicle "made an exaggerated breaking event without any obstruction." At least two other injury reports specifically mention that the hard braking happened for no apparent reason. The only injury report from 2025 that offers a reason for a hard-braking event involved an incident that happened in August in Los Angeles, when "some kids were playing in the pathway." The Waymo robotaxi stopped hard enough that the worker spent 175 days away from their job.

What Are Zoox Test Drivers Experiencing With Hard Braking?

Zoox contractors described hard braking, or "brake jabs" as they are referred to internally, as a recurring problem that can happen multiple times on a single test drive, sometimes in the same location. They can happen at any speed, though higher-velocity braking incidents typically take a harsher toll on the body. The braking often happens when the autonomous driving system detects, or mistakenly detects, debris on the road. The scariest incidents, the contractors said, are when a test vehicle experiences a "nogo," internal code for an entire system shutdown that often leads to a brake jab.

"You could be going 45 miles per hour and the car will enact a nogo, and suddenly you're being whipped forward in the middle of the street, in traffic, and you need to be able to take over quickly," one Zoox contractor said.

Anonymous Zoox Test Driver Contractor

Zoox's OSHA injury reports document the pattern. On January 5, 2025, a Zoox test vehicle was driving autonomously in San Francisco when it abruptly slammed on the brakes. The "harsh" stop injured the shoulder and upper arm of a contractor who was inside the SUV, leaving the worker on restricted duty for 16 days. Later that month, another driver was hurt after a Zoox test vehicle made an "unexpected" stop, injuring their neck and leaving them with a swollen shoulder. It took the contractor eight days to return to work without restrictions.

Steps to Understand the Scope of Test Driver Injuries

• Reporting Requirements: Zoox and Waymo appear in OSHA's dataset because they classify themselves as taxi, limo, or transit services, which OSHA subjects to greater disclosure because they're "higher-hazard" industries. OSHA also only requires establishments with 100 or more employees in these industries to make this information public, meaning test drivers in newer cities where operations haven't scaled may have been injured on the job without appearing in this dataset.
• Data Limitations: TechCrunch was unable to learn whether Waymo or Transdev logged any new injuries in 2026. OSHA does not require companies to submit annual data until the following year as part of the agency's Injury Tracking Application. In Zoox's case, injuries are still happening, according to sources who spoke to TechCrunch on condition of anonymity.
• Company Responses: Waymo declined to answer questions about the injuries reported to OSHA, stating only that "the safety of our riders, road users, and team is of paramount importance" and that test driving is "part of our ongoing validation process." Zoox declined to answer specific questions about the injuries it reported but said hard-braking incidents are sometimes unavoidable and that the injuries represent a small percentage of the millions of miles its test fleet traveled.

How Does This Tension Affect Waymo's Growth Strategy?

Waymo has spent more than a decade developing its self-driving cars, but it wasn't until 2025 that it really started to scale. The company started offering rides in new cities and began mapping and testing in others, growing its commercial fleet to more than 1,500 vehicles by May 2025. Today, that fleet is more than 3,500 vehicles. As Waymo expanded its service areas and started to familiarize itself with entirely new locations, the amount of autonomous vehicle testing almost certainly increased, and test driver injuries increased along with it.

The contrast between Stewart's aspirational marketing and the documented injuries highlights a disconnect in how the autonomous vehicle industry is being presented to the public. While Waymo positions the Ojai as a luxury lifestyle product with the endorsement of one of America's most recognizable authorities on domestic life, the company is simultaneously dealing with a pattern of test driver injuries that suggests the technology is not yet as refined as the marketing suggests.

Stewart herself expressed confidence in the technology. When asked whether there was anything she would not trust Waymo or AI to do, she answered, "No, not at all." She said she felt no hesitation during her first driverless ride in Los Angeles. "Nothing," she said. "I just hoped that all the cameras were working." However, those cameras create concerns of their own as law enforcement agencies seek footage recorded by Waymo vehicles. The company says its cameras are intended for mapping, safety, and improving the technology rather than facial recognition or biometric identification.

The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating multiple incidents in which Waymo vehicles passed stopped school buses in Austin, Texas. In December, Waymo recalled and updated the software in 3,067 vehicles equipped with its fifth-generation autonomous-driving system. These safety questions persist even as the company moves forward with its commercial expansion and celebrity endorsements.