William Gude, who owns the watchdog Twitter account Film the Police LA, captured the incident while just outside the scene of a suspected shooting at Hollywood High School. The robot, part of Uber spinoff Serve Robotics’ fleet, approached an intersection that was cordoned off with yellow caution tape.
According to Gude, the robot repeatedly attempted to get around the tape until a cameraman lifted it so the bot could pass. It then motored across the street and hesitated before finding a clear path through the police officers and civilians clustered on the other side.
In commenting on the incident, Serve Robotics spokesperson Aduke Thelwell said, “Serve’s standard operating procedure is to reroute and not cross barrier tapes; however in this instance the robot supervisor believed they were being waved through. We’re taking steps to ensure our operating procedures are followed in the future.”
