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Comment by stopachka | Hacker News Reader

I rode my first Waymo last weekend. It's _significantly_ better than an Uber. You get an almost 'white-glove' experience getting inside. Then, you have complete privacy. I could get work done in the car guilt-free. I was very surprised with the experience

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Odd that you felt you had complete privacy. I would imagine you are monitored six ways to Sunday.

Video recording is always on, but audio recording is only when you call for customer service.

does that mean you're a waymo employee with access to their audio data retention management, or are you referencing their public claims? either way, simply by virtue of the video recording alone (which is truly a drop in the bucket), you have at best the same privacy as in a highly monitored human driven vehicle.

the absence of other humans is immaterial with regard to privacy.

I base this on the information that is displayed in the vehicle.

> the absence of other humans is immaterial with regard to privacy.

I think my attitude with Uber v. Waymo as very similar to AirBnB v. hotel chains. My trust in AirBnB hosts to not install hidden cameras is much lower than hotel chains.

> I could get work done in the car guilt-free.

...have rideshare drivers guilt-tripped you about working?

Or is this just some kind of reflexive response?

If the addition of a human per se produces guilt, I want to gentle suggest that work on boundaries is in order, and that no amount of automation is likely to fix the underlying problem.

It's OK to meet your wants and needs (such as getting some work done - a want I think nearly all of us share, many of us somewhat compulsively) in the presence of other people. No shame in it.

Can’t work if the driver is making small talk.

Rarely take taxis but when I get a car to the airport (which is admittedly probably more professional than the average taxi driver) I've sometimes had some enjoyable small talk when I've been in the mood but never had an issue if I wanted to relax or do some work/read.

There's a reason that limousines and Rolls-Royce's have dividing walls between the driver and passengers.

And police cars.

This is just (neurotypical?) human programming to be considerate of others. The driver feels this, too. I'd assume that the CEO of Uber Dara can manage his emotions and boundaries, well. But he mentions

> Some experiences made him feel slighted, such as when riders discussed personal problems and company secrets on speakerphone, as if there was no one else present.

https://archive.is/2023.04.17-151927/https://www.wsj.com/amp... (WSJ article)

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