An incident unfolded in downtown Los Angeles on Saturday night when an unauthorized individual entered and attempted to operate a Waymo self-driving car, leading to his subsequent arrest on suspicion of grand theft auto. The incident occurred at the corner of 1st and Main, where the Waymo vehicle had stopped to let out a passenger.

LAPD Det. Meghan Aguilar revealed that the man, identified as Vincent Maurice Jones, a 34-year-old unhoused individual, entered the Waymo vehicle without permission. The Waymo company spokesman described Jones as an "unauthorized pedestrian." However, the company's Rider Support team promptly instructed him to exit the vehicle, which he allegedly refused to do.

Failing to comply with the instructions, Waymo contacted the police, who swiftly arrived and removed the individual from the vehicle. Jones was apprehended by authorities at 12:15 a.m. on Sunday, according to Aguilar. Thankfully, there were no reported injuries to the passenger, and the vehicle itself remained undamaged during the incident.

Waymo, a subsidiary of Alphabet Inc., has been testing self-driving vehicles in Los Angeles for over a year. Recently, the California Public Utilities Commission granted Waymo permission to expand its driverless taxi service into Los Angeles and San Mateo counties. The company can now operate fully autonomous vehicles and carry passengers as part of its testing and promotions program.

While Waymo's expansion has been met with criticism, including recent incidents in San Francisco where a Waymo vehicle was vandalized and burned in Chinatown, the California Public Utilities Commission disregarded objections from local leaders and approved the company's plans for expansion into San Mateo and Los Angeles counties, much to the dismay of L.A. County Supervisor Janice Hahn. Hahn called the commission's decision "dangerous" and voiced the need for greater local involvement in the approval process.

L.A. Mayor Karen Bass also previously expressed the desire to give local officials more authority in regulating Waymo's operations. She highlighted a previous incident where a Waymo vehicle failed to stop for a traffic officer at Beaudry Avenue and Wilshire Boulevard as a concern that local voices should be taken into account.

As Waymo continues to pioneer self-driving technology, incidents like these underscore the challenges and ongoing debates surrounding autonomous vehicles' integration into society. The arrest of Vincent Maurice Jones serves as a reminder that unauthorized access to self-driving cars is a serious matter requiring swift action by authorities and cooperation between public and private entities to ensure public safety.