While we are waiting to see a Tesla car self drive from LA to NY there is something more exciting that I am looking forward to see when the autopilot becomes even more advanced.
https://www.theverge.com/2016/10/19/13341100/tesla-self-driving-autonomous-road-trip-la-nyc
I could be wrong, but I think right now the autopilot system does its best to avoid a collision and if the collision can not be avoided it will do its best to choose the best option available, for example to crash on a light pole instead of a wall.
Imagine a scenario where the car is already in a collision with another car or object and the autopilot can still control the car (or what is left of it). Maybe the rear axis it totally destroyed but it can still use the front wheels (by braking or accelerating) and the steering system to direct the vehicle towards a better collision scenario.
That is something that a human can not do, we just can not react that quickly to control the car during a collision. But a computer brain can process what is happening and send commands to the car in nanoseconds.
It will be fascinating to see Tesla showing demos of how Tesla cars save humans during collisions. Self driving cars are here to stay and they will take us to wonderful places with extreme safety.
Thank you Elon!