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Software Update Adds Autonomous Driving To Tesla's Bag of Tricks (nytimes.com)

Posted by timothy on from the just-lie-back-and-relax dept.

An anonymous reader writes with the news that Tesla owners today found their cars had been upgraded with the company's new autopilot feature: "That means the next time you see a Model S cruising next to you on the interstate, look closely: It may be driving itself." Adds the submitter: Well, I guess some of you will be celebrating this; but this submitters' fear, is that if this technology becomes pervasive, the skill of operating a vehicle will be lost, as is any skill that isn't practiced regularly. It is unlikely that 'self-driving cars' will reach a point where they can handle 100% of all driving circumstances without human intervention, emergency circumstances being the first and foremost example of what an automated system could not adequately handle unaided; what will we do then, when injuries that could have been avoided or when lives are lost because people aren't competent to operate a vehicle any longer?

2 of 242 comments (clear)

  1. I think submitter sounds like a Luddite... by Thing+1 · · Score: 1, Troll

    "Software will never be able to beat human reactions!" Yet in many cases now, it already has.

    Flying is in some respects much simpler than driving; and, auto-pilots can now take off, cruise, and land.

    The real test? What the insurance rates are -- self-driving cars will likely be a lower risk, and thus cost less to insure. Perhaps not at the beginning, while the kinks are being worked out. (Around the dial.)

    --
    I feel fantastic, and I'm still alive.
  2. Safety of humans and/or computers by sjbe · · Score: 0, Troll

    The notion that humans will actually react better than an automated system in an emergency seems backwards to me.

    I think you'll be able to find cases where humans react better and cases where computers work better. I also expect that the cases where humans work better will be heavily correlated with driver skill. I think a well designed system with computers and people working together will probably work better than either independently.

    I think the biggest improvement computers will provide is for impaired drivers (read drunk/distracted). A huge percentage of accidents are due to impaired drivers.