Are Self-Driving Cars Really Safer Than Human Drivers?

More than $250 billion has been invested in the last 3 years. But there are good reasons to believe that autonomous vehicles may not be capable of handling unexpected situations safely as humans do.

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Are Self-Driving Cars Really Safer Than Human Drivers?

Self-driving vehicles are one of the most exciting and impactful applications of AI. More than 35,000 people die every year in motor vehicle crashes in the US alone. Since self-driving vehicles can theoretically react faster than human drivers and don’t drive drunk, text while driving, or get tired, they should be able to dramatically improve vehicle safety. They also promise to increase the independence and mobility of seniors and others who cannot easily drive.

But will self-driving vehicles actually be safer than humans? The biggest issue for the automotive industry revolves around handling unexpected situations that arise from edge cases. However, safety standards are not prescriptive, and regulatory agencies are not requiring compliance with these standards for autonomous vehicles. There are good reasons to believe that some types of autonomous vehicles may not be capable of handling these edge cases.

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