There was tragic news yesterday that a pedestrian was killed by an autonomously driven car that was part of Uber's test program. With it comes a moment to step back and consider the costs of technological progression and weigh that against the positive impacts it can have on our lives.
The Costs
New technology is inherently risky because it’s hard to predict the problems that it will cause, and often the problems are unavoidable. When Thomas Newcomen invented the first commercially viable steam engine, it ushered in the industrial revolution. But the boilers that powered the stream engines were incredibly dangerous—essentially pressure driven bombs. Early automobile accidents were far more likely to be fatal than they are today. And unknown scores of men died trying to conquer flight, some with ingenious contraptions, and some not so much. Further, some impacts of these developments took decades. I guarantee neither Newcomem nor the Wright brothers predicted their inventions effects on global warming.
Likewise autonomous vehicles will have dangers and will suffer growing pains. At some point a self-driving semi-truck will cause a 10-car pile-up on the interstate. Haywire AI could cause an accident, and a hacked system could be used for all sorts of wrongdoing.
So the question becomes: are the risks worth the reward?
The Rewards
Once the technology matures, vehicle safety should improve tenfold. Highway fatalities are predicted to plummet, distracted driving will be a thing of the past, and congestion should decrease.
But will this technology be as impacting as the steam engine or airplane? It may not be as revolutionary, but I would argue it will have just as strong an impact on the average person’s life.
I spent an hour-and-a-half on my daily commute for work. Throw in errands on the weekend and a few trips to the gym, and that’s 10 hours a week I lose to driving. If I could spend those extra 10 hours working or reading or even sleeping, well to me that’s life changing.