Google veterans head off on their own to work on self-driving trucks

Post by dragonwriter » Tue, May 17, 2016, 4:11 PM UTC

jhall1468 wrote: post #64

lgieron wrote: post #44

Earlier quoted context omitted.

How does it work for self-driving cars then? In case of regular cars, you go to jail for vehicular manslaughter when you brake the traffic laws and in effect kill someone. My guess is that, if the driver of a self-driving car decides to press the "auto drive" button and the car violates traffic laws and kills someone, it's still the driver who's responsible. The self-driving features are not deemed safe by law and ar…

> In case of regular cars, you go to jail for vehicular manslaughter when you brake the traffic laws and in effect kill someone. But the truck won't do that. Break the law, that is. Unlike humans, its knowledge of traffic laws will be complete. It won't "break the law" in the sense that you are using the phrase. However, there are other ethical/moral issues (do we program a car to kill 1 person if it saves 3?).

Post by wmeredith » Tue, May 17, 2016, 4:12 PM UTC

yk wrote: post #92

cheriot wrote: post #15

Sending a truck down an interstate for 20 hours has to be the lowest hanging fruit for self driving vehicles. When was the last time an entire category of jobs became obsolete fast enough that laid off employees blamed the technology? When long haul truckers are out of work, how will municipal bus driver unions react?

The interesting challenges on a interstate are pretty similar as the usual challenges of autonomous vehicles, so what happens if there is a construction site, or if there are people on the road. (But you have to deal with that at a lot higher speeds.) And Ars had a very interesting article on the validation of self-driving cars, the thing is humans are rather good at driving, to the tune of 10^8 km per fatal accident…

Post by bobwaycott » Tue, May 17, 2016, 4:22 PM UTC

dexterdog wrote: post #88

tgb29 wrote: post #84

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Maybe some jobs will be replaced, but the industry is facing a shortage of truck drivers. One of the most common job listings on Craigslist is for truck drivers with paid training. The lifestyle of a truck driver can be brutal and unhealthy.

Plus, who would want to get into that industry today when you know that it's going to be automated as soon as possible?

Post by 1024core » Tue, May 17, 2016, 4:31 PM UTC

headShrinker wrote: post #85

ttcbj wrote: post #65

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It does, and I wondered why Google hadn't targeted it first. Its simpler,and there is a compelling business case. I wonder if their decision was driven by political savvy - self driving cars help the blind/elderly, and automate work most people are glad to see automated. Self-driving trucks are going to have a major employment impact which will likely draw political resistance.

I would say this is absolutely a political decision and a marketing decision. Google has gone to great lengths to help the public feel comfortable with autonomous cars, right down to the 'cute' buggy look of their vehicles. The trick is to move slow enough so people's interest out paces their fears. The implications for self driving cars is nothing short of an existential threat for so many people in this world. As w…

Post by krschultz » Tue, May 17, 2016, 4:52 PM UTC

cheriot wrote: post #15

Sending a truck down an interstate for 20 hours has to be the lowest hanging fruit for self driving vehicles. When was the last time an entire category of jobs became obsolete fast enough that laid off employees blamed the technology? When long haul truckers are out of work, how will municipal bus driver unions react?