The Future of Autonomous Vehicles: Benefits, Challenges, and Ethical Considerations

You have surely heard of the self-driving taxis that are appearing all across Japan. Is there such a thing? Can modern cars now self-drive? Actually, the answer is yes in all respects.

They also offer a world of conveniences, but are they really all that great? That’s what we want to discuss today.

In short, autonomous vehicles have gained worldwide attention for their many possible use cases. They’ve also been touted as a more economically sound, environmentally friendly, and sustainable solution.

As with all these fancy inventions, there’s both good and bad to what they can do. People seem to think that just because a robot now handles all the driving, roads will be safer and a lot fewer traffic fights will occur.

There’s a lot of ground to cover, so let’s get started.

Autonomous Vehicles in the Real World:

The number of fatal motor vehicle accidents brought on by human error might be greatly decreased with the use of autonomous cars.

In 2020, there were 35,766 such incidents in the US, which led to the deaths of 38,824 people. Some might counter that accidents still happen despite the use of self-driving cars. Studies show that human error accounts for 99% of autonomous vehicle accidents.

Further examination reveals that just two of these incidents involved self-driving auto technology, most of which were caused by people in other cars or pedestrians.

It is conceivable that autonomous cars are more reliable than their manual equivalents overall.

Many people think of doomsday scenarios when they imagine self-driving transportation. One of them is the emergence of AGI.

As you may know, AGI doesn’t take into account any human thoughts or feelings, even though it’s capable of higher-order reasoning.

If, for example, an AGI-controlled car drives over a child, it won’t think twice about the consequences. It’s simply programmed to keep on driving and perhaps take shortcuts on the road, even at the expense of human life.

Even worse, an intelligent robot car might not see eye-to-eye with what a human thinks is the right route to reach a destination.

In such cases, there’s no room for argument, and suggesting otherwise might not be a great idea for those inside the car.

There’s an ugly side to the story, and while AGI might not materialize, more intelligent self-driving cars will present many challenges.

6 Moral Dilemmas Self-Driving Cars Face Today:

The debate rages on today about what ethical considerations people should consider when considering autonomous vehicles.

Usually, it all circles back to the five moral dilemmas. Let's explore each and see what they're about.

1. Making Predefined Decisions Versus Random Decisions in All Cases:

When a human driver is involved in an accident, their response is often instinctual and random rather than analytical and calculated.

This inherent unpredictability in human decision-making cannot be controlled or changed, leading society to accept that accidents resulting in harm are simply unfortunate occurrences.

Defending this stance becomes significantly more challenging with autonomous vehicles, as algorithms are unable to make instinctive decisions. Rather, every decision made by a self-driving car must be pre-programmed and trained into its system.

While the intentional decision-making of an autonomous vehicle allows it to prioritize avoiding dangerous situations, it cannot prevent accidents entirely, especially when sharing the road with human drivers.

Autonomous vehicles are essentially robotic vehicles that operate on algorithms. They will, therefore, probably always adhere to a set of predetermined norms or patterns.

They will behave consistently according to a set of predetermined rules or patterns. Some might counter that random accidents brought on by human error are more acceptable than the planned demise of a person or an animal in the case of a self-driving car, and they might have a point.

Who should be held accountable in such cases for the lives lost? Should the software developer, the autonomous vehicle's maker, or the vehicle itself be held responsible?

As a result of the lack of a conclusive response to this query, most people believe that accidents ought to be determined by human beings rather than machines.

2. Handing Control to the Driver:

Even when the vehicle is in completely autonomous mode, Tesla mandates that the driver maintain their grip on the wheel and their attention. The driver must always be prepared to take over.

Will the autonomous vehicle develop its own personality and replace the driver? What about accidents? Who do we blame?

As a result, one of the main moral conundrums raised by self-driving cars is whether it is right or proper to hand control back to the driver suddenly. The driver and the self-driving automobile both have ethical considerations here.

3. Rightful Deciders of the Ethics of Self-Driving Cars:

The developers who develop the technology for self-driving automobiles typically decide on the ethics of these vehicles. In specific circumstances, such as accidents, the car will behave according to what it considers to be right or wrong.

However, there is debate over who or what organization should decide on the morality of self-driving cars. Are they engineers responsible for the car's technology? Is it the national government of the nation in which the car will be operated?

One may claim that nobody has the right to judge the morality of self-driving car situations. The choice must be made by the vehicle's driver.

4. Cars Making Impartial Decisions:

According to one school of thought, autonomous vehicles should make objective judgments in the case of an accident.

They argue that the vehicle should always select the choice that results in the least amount of injury and shouldn't make distinctions between people based on their age, gender, or other attributes.

For instance, if the automobile has to decide between rescuing a toddler and a group of elderly people, it ought to pick the latter option since it would save more lives.

Furthermore, human life should come before animal life. Germany is the first nation to implement these regulations for driverless cars, placing human life above all other factors.

5. Hacking:

The potential of cybercriminals breaking into the self-driving car system and obtaining access to private information or engaging in harmful activity is continuous.

For instance, it is feasible that a cyberthief can infiltrate an autonomous vehicle's system and order it to create an accident in order to cast suspicion on the driver.

It can be difficult and ambiguous to determine who is accountable in such situations for any accidents and fatalities that can ensue, whether it is the driver, the cybercriminal, or the automaker who neglected to secure the system.

The general population could thus consider self-driving automobiles immoral.

6. Driver’s Licenses: Humans and Cars:

The emergence of fully self-driving cars has prompted questions as to whether driver's licenses will still be necessary. In addition, the issue of responsibility on the road arises.

Normally, the car's driver would be held accountable, but with AI, the driving is done by software, which is not accountable for its acts. Therefore, addressing the moral issue of accountability might necessitate government action.

Local traffic rules dictate that a licensed driver is required to be present and available to take control. Accident responsibility will probably be established based on the cause of the accident, with the manufacturer only being held accountable if the accident is shown to be the result of a technological flaw or bug.

In the End:

People with varying perspectives have vigorously supported and opposed the ethics of autonomous cars, which have been the focus of continuous discussion.

There is yet no definitive answer to the ethical conundrums that self-driving cars bring, and these problems remain unresolved.

We anticipate that strong legal frameworks will be built as the use of self-driving cars increases in popularity to handle these challenges adequately.

For now, lovers of autonomous vehicles will have to be content with the technology remaining relatively outside mainstream adoption.