Automation’s Impact Across A Wide Range of Industries
It is becoming clear that the development of autonomous vehicles will have implications beyond the automotive industry alone. In a recent article, Mike Nelson and Trevor Satnick of Eversheds Sutherland (US) LLP provide insight into those implications with regard to areas such as auto insurance, ethical issues, big data, urban and suburban planning, and artificial intelligence. For example, the article posits that individuals in the future may be able to hail autonomous vehicles the same way they currently hail an Uber or Lyft ride. If so, the availability of such services could change the need for individuals to purchase their own car and the way that urban and suburban spaces are developed. As another example, the article explores the ethical issues that need to be considered when programming a vehicle, such as how the vehicle should weigh the value of human life. Ultimately, driving has been woven into the fabric of US culture for more than a century, and relinquishing control in favor of autonomous vehicles is likely to impact that fabric in ways that we are only now beginning to understand.
