Autonomous taxis struggle with trust: 70% of Americans remain skeptical

On October 23, research company Ipsos published survey results showing that 70% of Americans lack sufficient trust in autonomous taxis to use them. Additionally, 66% of respondents do not see any need for such transport at all, while only 40% expressed readiness to order a robotaxi right now out of curiosity.

• 70% of respondents do not trust driverless taxis enough to ride them;
• 66% see no real necessity for autonomous transport systems;
• 30% of Americans are openly opposed to the technology;
• Only 23% would like to use self-driving cars regularly.

Safety statistics versus public perception

The absence of a human driver remains a major reason for safety concerns among potential passengers. Overall public attitude is restrained, with only 23% wanting to use autonomous vehicles and 47% being undecided. However, safety data strongly favors the technology: Waymo reports that its cars are involved in injury-causing accidents 82% less often than human drivers on comparable urban roads.

Real-world incidents and global market growth

Despite solid safety numbers, real-world glitches continue to fuel public anxiety. In December 2025, a massive power outage in San Francisco caused multiple Waymo robotaxis to stall and block traffic. In the spring of 2026, software bugs led to vehicles entering closed construction zones, prompting a software recall for nearly 3,900 cars. Meanwhile, major players keep expanding: Waymo runs hundreds of thousands of weekly trips across U.S. cities, and China's Baidu surpassed 22 million total rides by April 2026 through its Apollo Go service.

Industry outlook and regional developments

Similar advancements are taking place globally, with Yandex deploying autonomous taxis in Innopolis and Sirius, and planning to test and deploy dozens of self-driving vehicles in Moscow by the end of 2026. Ultimately, widespread adoption depends not only on overcoming regulatory and technical hurdles, but also on convincing a hesitant public to trust machines with their personal safety.