One Potential Downside Of Killer Cars

Eventually what a self-driving car's A.I. will compute in the event of an accident with nearby bystanders is whether to maneuver to keep the driver safe or maneuver to keep bystanders safe. So, the A.I. will crunch the numbers once it realizes an accident is unavoidable. The on-board computer will act on the data and choose to maneuver in accordance with the least potential number of people injured or killed. It's an ethical scenario known as the trolley problem. Read more details -- here -- . It is a little disconcerting knowing that your car would put you, the driver, at risk after it determines your injury is the least damaging in an accident involving multiple people.

Maybe even more concerning is the notion of a more advanced on-board A.I. that will analyze not just potential casualties, but face recognition of bystanders and data based off licence plates of the other cars, etc., and with that information decide the value of potential casualties. For instance, if hypothetical VIP billionaire accidentally stepped in the path of your car, would have said billionaire already paid off the automotive and insurance companies, which in turn instructs A.I. to avoid billionaire bystander at all costs? Yes, A.I. could detect the citizen and keep him out of harm's way based on a secretive insurance clause. In any case, the ethics behind the scenes right now are pretty insignificant considering the current state of automotive transportation safety.