Google’s Self-Driving Programs May Yet to Come True

by Rian

We’ve heard of good old ethics argument when it comes to driver-less cars, where as “who will pay for insurance, who will be responsible for accidents, and what happens to the taxi drivers.” These arguments are, in fact, simply not related to what is going on in the market. These questions behind new technology has nothing to do with why Google cannot sell its self-driving programs just yet. It is still within Google’s limit to simply sell it as a car modification package, provided all the consumers will buy them from a car repair shop or self-install them.

For instance, California is asking Google to leave steering wheels, accelerators and brakes in place before testing automatic driving. Which may sound absurd, however according to the laws of several states, the driver behind a wheel is still responsible for any errors or accidents Self-driving programs might make. Driver-less technology hasn’t been field tested in a State-wide scale, no wonder why lawmakers want to be careful. But in other words, as long as you are willing to take up god-damn chances, there shouldn’t be any “ethical” or “legal” problems. It is still your car, and you are behind the wheel.

It is still unclear as to why Google hasn’t publicly spoken of such possibility, selling a self-driving program package. Google has done a very similar job with a smartphone OS, now only a commercial version not freebies. Later in time, auto industries will adapt to the technology, which shouldn’t be an excuse for Google for not leading the market. Now is the time for Google to grow a backbone.