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GTA Players Just Discovered They Can Hijack Self-Driving Taxis

GTA Online’s KnoWay taxi “hijacking” is remote operation in a scripted mission, not freely taking over taxis in open play. Here’s what the mission involves and how its fictional robotaxis differ from real-world Waymo reports.
Entry547 Date Time3 min MechanicCarCody Team
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In GTA Online’s A Safehouse in the Hills update, players remotely operate a fictional KnoWay taxi during the scripted KnoWay Out mission. Despite the headline, reporting says you cannot simply get into and take over these taxis in free roam. The mission’s destructive objectives target the fictional company, not real autonomous vehicles.

How the KnoWay taxi mission works

KnoWay taxis appear in Los Santos, but they are not freely drivable taxis in ordinary open play, according to The Drive’s gameplay report. In the KnoWay Out mission, players reach the company depot and use a test pod to remotely control a taxi as part of objectives intended to damage KnoWay’s stock price.

The reported mission objectives include knocking down traffic signals, hitting pedestrians, jumping, damaging billboards, and ramming other fleet vehicles. These are fictional mission actions, not real-world instructions. The key distinction is that this is scripted remote operation, not a player taking the wheel of an autonomous taxi encountered on the street.

What KnoWay is parodying

KnoWay is a fictional autonomous taxi company introduced in GTA Online’s A Safehouse in the Hills update, which launched on December 10, 2025, according to TechCrunch and The Drive. TechCrunch described the taxis as resembling earlier Chrysler Pacifica vans associated with Waymo. The game’s reported slogan, “We Kno where you’re going,” points to the story’s focus on surveillance and public concerns about robotaxi data collection.

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#1 Best Overall
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  • Please note that although this game is Region Free or Region Unlocked and will work on all systems, this is the European version and may differ from the local version in age rating, labeling or instructions.

KnoWay is not Waymo, and a fictional mission mechanic does not demonstrate a vulnerability in Waymo’s vehicles. The game borrows recognizable robotaxi imagery and themes, but its plot and remote-control sequence are not evidence about how real robotaxis can be taken over.

GTA’s mission and real-world robotaxis

Subject What the reporting says What it does not show
GTA Online KnoWay mission Players remotely operate a taxi in the scripted KnoWay Out mission. That KnoWay taxis can be freely carjacked in open play.
Waymo trunk incident The Los Angeles Times reported that a pedestrian entered a Waymo taxi through a trunk left open by a previous rider; the next customer discovered him when the vehicle arrived, and police removed him. A takeover of the vehicle’s driving system.
Fleet vandalism TechCrunch reported Waymo co-CEO Tekedra Mawakana saying the company was “very focused on working with law enforcement to make sure that we pursue the people who are committing these crimes against our fleet.” That the GTA mission reflects the operation or security of real robotaxis.

The real-world accounts are separate incidents with different evidence. The Los Angeles Times described unauthorized entry into a vehicle, not control of its driving system. TechCrunch’s account of Mawakana’s statement concerns crimes against Waymo’s fleet; neither report makes the GTA mission a real-world security demonstration.

Rank #2
ROCKSTAR GAMES Grand Theft Auto V Standard ALLEMAND, Anglais, English, Italien Playstation 5
  • STUNNING VISUALS — Enhanced levels of fidelity and performance with new graphics modes featuring up to 4K resolution, up to 60 frames per second, HDR options, ray tracing, improved texture quality, and more
  • FASTER LOADING — Quicker access to the action as the world of Los Santos and Blaine County load in faster than ever before.
  • ADAPTIVE TRIGGERS AND HAPTIC FEEDBACK — Feel every moment through the DualSense controller, from directional damage to weather effects, rough road surfaces to explosions, and more.
  • TEMPEST 3D AUDIO — Hear the sounds of the world with pinpoint precision: the throttle of a stolen supercar, the rattle of neighbouring gunfire, the roar of a helicopter overhead, and more.
  • Please note that although this game is Region Free or Region Unlocked and will work on all systems, this is the international version and may differ from the local version in age rating, labeling or instructions.

Update notes and availability

Rockstar’s official GTAV Title Update 1.73 notes list fixes for KnoWay Out mission issues and a fix for taxis appearing unexpectedly in Freemode. Those maintenance notes confirm that the mission received fixes, but do not establish that every platform or account had identical access conditions.

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FAQ

Can you hijack the self-driving taxis in GTA?

The reported mechanic is remote operation of a taxi during the scripted KnoWay Out mission. The Drive reported that players cannot simply enter a KnoWay taxi in free roam and take control of it.

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Rank #3
Grand Theft Auto V for PlayStation 5 (US Version), with PremGear ThumbSticks (2 pack: 1 High-Rise, 1 Mid-Rise) & Cleaning Cloth
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  • STUNNING VISUALS: Enhanced levels of fidelity and performance with new graphics modes featuring up to 4K resolution, up to 60 frames per second, HDR options, ray tracing, improved texture quality, and more
  • FASTER LOADING: Quicker access to the action as the world of Los Santos and Blaine County load in faster than ever before
  • ADAPTIVE TRIGGERS & HAPTIC FEEDBACK: Feel every moment through the DualSense controller, from directional damage to weather effects, rough road surfaces to explosions, and more
  • TEMPEST 3D AUDIO: Hear the sounds of the world with pinpoint precision: the throttle of a stolen supercar, the rattle of neighboring gunfire, the roar of a helicopter overhead, and more

Are the KnoWay taxis based on Waymo?

KnoWay is fictional. TechCrunch described its taxis as resembling earlier Chrysler Pacifica vans associated with Waymo, but the in-game company is not Waymo.

Does the GTA mission show that real robotaxis can be taken over?

No. The mission is fictional gameplay. The reported Los Angeles Waymo incident involved a person entering a taxi through an open trunk; it was not reported as a takeover of the vehicle’s driving system.

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