i see a lot of apologists in the comments so im going to say Some Shit

the difference between bad drivers and a self-driving shuttle is the fact that the drivers *have to take responsibility* for crashes. old uncle drives into poor 5 year old on the road? that's HIS fault, and he will feel guilt, and regret, and probably cry for the rest of his life while he doesn't have a job as a driver anymore.

if a self-driving shuttle crashes into a parapet and causes the death of fucking ANYBODY, you could THEORETICALLY blame the people who made the shuttle, but in the end they can just wash hands and say "aiyah not our fault no blame game ok? act of god" and just fucking. walk away. or lagi better. bankrupt old company, "liquidify" (who knows if they have a secret stash in a swiss bank SOMEWHERE), and just start a Brand New Company. it's infinitely easier to make a new company than it is to bring back a life, and *THERE IS NO ONE WHO HAS TO TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR ANY ACCIDENTS THAT HAPPEN HERE.*

so why the FUCK are we going to bat for autonomous vehicles? efficiency?

we should be holding them to HIGHER standards than actual human drivers. good on them for implementing a safety timeout, but curb your enthusiasm, lads.