"“Uber is doing the same thing many companies have been doing,” Bryant Walker Smith, an engineering professor at the University of South Carolina, told the NewsHour. But the big news is Uber inviting the general public into its self-driving cars, he said.
Walker Smith said that consumers should expect to see more changes in transportation in the next couple of years.
Smith said Uber’s decision is an opportunity for both the public and creators to discuss the pros and cons of autonomous driving. For one, Uber is trying to replace the jobs of those who drive for the company, he said.
There could be a number of destruction to certain industries, like the taxi driver industry, and there “should be a public conversation about it,” he said. This is also a chance to inform the public about self-driving technology, he said."
- Date Published:08/18/2016
- Original Publication:PBS Newshour