The unofficial mayor of a busy San Francisco street is dead after being struck by one of Waymo's self-driving cars. KitKat, the beloved pet cat at Randa's Market, was run over by an automated car on 27 Oct. He was rushed to a hospital by a bartender working nearby, but was pronounced dead. KitKat's death has sparked an outpouring of fury and sadness from those who loved him " and questions about the dangers posed by self-driving cars. Randa's Market owner Mike Zeidan said: He was a special cat. You can tell by the love and support he's getting from the community that he was amazing.' San Francisco Supervisor Jackie Fielder spoke out publicly, saying: Waymo thinks they can just sweep this under the rug and we will all forget, but here in the Mission, we will never forget our sweet KitKat.'
Anger in the community increased after it was revealed that on the same day KitKat was killed, Waymo co-CEO Tekedra Mawakana said she thought society is ready to accept deaths' caused by automated cars. But KitKat's owner pointed out that next time, the death could be that of a child, not just a beloved pet. As of April 2025, Waymo offered over 250,000 paid rides per week, totaling over one million miles monthly. From June 2024 to March 2025, there were 570 reported crashes involving cars with automated driving systems in the US alone.
The late KitKat, cruelly killed by automation.
