Doctor sues Waymo after AI flags him as a terrorist
A doctor in California has sued autonomous taxi company Waymo, alleging that it denied him rides because he was mistakenly flagged as a terrorist, due to nothing more than his Islamic name.
Nasser Mohamed, MD, a neurologist, filed his lawsuit in San Francisco Superior Court, listing Waymo’s parent company, technology giant Alphabet, as the defendant. The doctor alleges his civil rights were violated when the tech companies confused his name with others on a government watch list.
As for how the mix-up happened, the lawsuit blames an artificial intelligence tool used by Waymo and Alphabet that scans the Office of Foreign Assets Control database, looking for names added by the U.S. Department of the Treasury of individuals suspected of financing terrorism.
According to Mohamed’s attorneys, this revelation came to light thanks to a Waymo employee, who reportedly confirmed that the AI conducts its scan after users register for a new account. In this instance, “Nasser Mohamed” was not on a government list. However, the lawsuit contends that the name was similar to others in the database, causing the tool to make a mistake.
The San Francisco Chronicle has more details on the lead-up to the court filing. The timeline they provided is summarized below:
In November 2023, after registering for the Waymo service, the Qatari native said it was immediately apparent something was wrong when he could not book a ride through the smartphone app.
Attempts to remedy the situation with customer support would result in tickets being closed without an answer, he said. It wasn’t until he took his complaint to social media that the company took notice, and unknown employees offered details about how the AI could have caused the perceived discrimination.
In a statement to the outlet, Waymo denied certain aspects of the story:
“Waymo does not discriminate use of our service,” a spokesperson is quoted as saying. “We are committed to providing access to all in the communities we serve. We disagree with the claims made.”
The lawsuit was filed on Nov. 4 and has yet to advance. It’s unclear if a settlement will be reached or if the case will advance to trial.
Mohamed’s lawyers say the doctor is not seeking a financial payout. Instead, he is looking for injunctive relief to ensure alleged incidents such as these do not happen again.
An activist doctor, seeking asylum
In its reporting, the San Francisco Chronicle noted that Mohamed is a well-known civil rights activist. An interview with CNN has more details on his history: A gay man, he sought asylum in the U.S., so as not to have to return to his home country of Qatar. According to the outlet, he is seen by many as the very first Qatari to come out publicly as gay, something that carries extremely harsh penalties in his homeland. He was also an outspoken critic of FIFA holding the World Cup in Qatar in 2022.
Being partially educated in the U.S. through a joint Weill Cornell Medical College-Qatar program, he spent a significant amount of time in New York. Later, he would go on to do his residency and fellowship in the U.S., where he’s been living consistently since 2011.
In 2019, he founded Osra Medical, a primary and urgent care practice in San Francisco, where he actively sees patients. His asylum application has yet to be finalized.
Chad is an award-winning writer and editor with over 15 years of experience working in media. He has a decade-long professional background in healthcare, working as a writer and in public relations.