Waymo and the American Red Cross Partner to Save Lives

As the holidays approach, the US blood supply is low, yet blood donations tend to decline during this busy season. Inclement weather and busy schedules can pose challenges to donating, but the need for donations never stops. Every two seconds, someone in the US needs blood.

To help boost blood donations in San Francisco, Waymo partnered with the American Red Cross to sponsor a blood drive. Waymo invited its network of riders and employees to donate and also provided fully autonomous Waymo One rides to and from the donation site.

“I often say the number one reason people don't donate is they weren't asked,” says Justin Mueller, Donor Services Executive for the American Red Cross Northern California Blood Services Region. The American Red Cross is the largest blood bank in the United States. “The Waymo partnership is important because Waymo is helping us make the ask, and making it easier for folks to be able to donate and making it more accessible,” Mueller shares. “That's why this is such a powerful partnership.”

In order to help make it more accessible for community members to donate during the event, Waymo offered two free rides to Waymo One riders who signed up to donate, making traveling to and from the center more convenient for individuals who might have been deterred from coming due to parking, traffic or other transportation related reasons.

Waymo encourages employees nationwide to donate blood year round and has previously hosted blood drives in partnership with the American Red Cross at a Waymo office. 

Allana, a product manager with Waymo, donated blood during the event and rode to the event in a Waymo One vehicle. 

“As a Waymo employee, we're encouraged to give back,” Allana shares. “It means so much to me to work at a company that encourages this.”

Julie, a frequent Waymo One rider in San Francisco who attended the blood drive, said she learned about the event through an email from Waymo.

“I was very happy to get an email from Waymo saying that they were running a blood drive and that they were going to offer free rides to and from the blood center,” Julie shares. “That just really made the decision to donate blood a lot easier and just a no-brainer.”

Mueller urged everyone to consider donating blood this holiday season. 

“In order to donate blood, I'd ask that you go to redcrossblood.org or download our app so you can get more information about the donation process, about eligibility requirements,” Mueller urged. “When you find out that you're eligible to donate blood and you make that appointment and you come in, you will help us save lives.”