I have to admit I'm not very tech savvy.
I have problems with computers, and the
thought of self-driving cars does make me
nervous. Still it is a great discussion
topic - and worth debating. If you don't
learn - you don't grow.

Therefore, the following link although a
few years old is still worth reading. It predicts
(by an expert) that autonomous cars will
be operating in Australia within a few years.
Wow!

http://www.motoring.com.au/self-driving-cars-here-in-four-years-45276/

Let's hope that Jeep solves its problems!

See:https://blog.kaspersky.com/blackhat-jeep-cherokee-hack-explained/9493/

Dear Foxy and Suseonline,

Forgive me but I think the two of you might be missing the point.

This is not really about the technology but rather about the ethics.

Both of you have shown on innumerable occasions that you are capable of thinking through and appreciating the ethical implications of a wide range of topics on OLO. In many ways you are among the most proficient.

A corporation by law is supposed to act in the way that maximises profits for its shareholders, or in the very least act in their best interest. However it is community input on acceptable behaviour that thankfully has them at least making some show of acting ethically. This is essentially the same case.

Just as you do not have to be a medical professional or a scientist to serve on ethics committees you do not have to be across the technology to be able to have valuable input into this debate.

Ultimately it will be the community who will guide what is and what isn't acceptable behaviour of AVs.

There are many reasons why not only is this technology inevitable but in a large range of cases desirable. Being engaged in the debate around how they will operate is important.

Dear Is Mise,

Many things are capable of being hacked including military weaponry, vital infrastructure and essential utilities. What is important is that systems are continually upgraded as to be as robust as possible. it is right to raise it as a concern but i'm not sure it is not a reason to roll out the technology.

Probably, one day, the enormous advances in driverless cars will be combined with the Uber phenomenon.

If so, much larger vehicles may be just as effective to take more people from point A to point B,C,....... and Z. All we will have to do is pay a fare and let the vehicle take us here. We could get on at designated stops and chat to other people in the vehicle while we are travelling, to avoid getting bored.

And we could call it, something like, 'public transport'. Hey, I may patent that.

Joe

Dear SteeleRedux,

I have difficulty getting my mind to grasp
the ethical questions associated with autonomous cars.
If humans have difficulty with ethics regarding car
incidents how can we expect autonomous cars
to be able to make ethical decisions unless
for in-built technology?

Dear Loudmouth,

You wrote;

“Probably, one day, the enormous advances in driverless cars will be combined with the Uber phenomenon.”

That is already happening. For instance earlier this year GM put up half a billion dollars in a partnership with Lyft, an Uber competitor, to develop a network of driverless cars.

http://www.wired.com/2016/01/gm-and-lyft-are-building-a-network-of-self-driving-cars/#slide-1

This may well mean the pressure for individual car ownership will diminish since the expense of registration, insurance, upkeep, garaging, and parking may be an expense people will be happy to forego if the convenience is there.

Dear Foxy,

I fell you are over-complicating the issue. Let me try framing my questions this way;

1. You are suddenly faced with four people unexpectedly on the road in front of your car. You only have time to swerve left or right. By going left you will hit a mother, father and a child. Going right you will hit a single adult. By doing nothing you will inevitably strike them all. What is the ethical action?

2. You are travelling down a suburban street and suddenly a pedestrian steps out from behind a parked car. The only way of missing him would be to swerve into a parked truck. Do you risk potential injury to yourself to save someone from near certain death or live changing injuries?

3. If you were a passenger in the vehicle how would you want the driver to act in the same scenario?

Do you find any of these questions difficult to answer?