Full Speed Ahead: Confronting the Ethics of Self-Driving Cars

        In philosophy professor James Moor's "Why We Need Better Ethics For Emerging Technologies," he describes three stages of technological development: the introduction, permeation, and power stages. He argues that for technologies which are developing and quickly passing through these stages, we as a society need to think ahead and work towards developing ethical attitudes and policy towards these new innovations.

        One interesting new example of such a technology is self-driving cars. In a world where flying cars represent an idealized version of the future, self-driving cars seem like a great step in the right direction. They are the ultimate convenience, allowing people to sit back, relax, and not worry - doesn’t that sound perfect? Not only do they make travel time more productive, but they eliminate the possibility of human error. Having hit my own garage with my car one too many times, this sounds like a dream come true.

        However, with any new technology comes unforeseen ethical issues, and self-driving cars are no exception. Right now, the technology has moved into what Moor calls the "permeation stage." It is no longer just a curiosity; rather, its integration into society has begun. With this comes many unanswered questions. If a self-driving car gets in an accident, who is liable? The owner of the car? The manufacturer? The company who created the AI for the car? Further, what happens when the car encounters an unavoidable accident and needs to decide what to do, like deciding between hitting pedestrians or swerving around them and harming the passengers? We haven't figured out the answers to these questions yet, but Moor would say that the need to do so is urgent.

        Another issue is parking. Driverless cars are going to need to park somewhere, and since they will likely be electric, one proposed solution is to create lots just for them. However, because parking is already problematic in many cities, and those who own these cars at first will likely be the wealthy, this becomes a socioeconomic problem as well. People are probably not going to like that the wealthy autonomous vehicle owners get their own private parking lots.

        These are the kinds of challenges for which no policy has been developed, and are exactly what Moor warns about. Since technology is developing so fast, policy vacuums are created, meaning there is nothing in place to resolve these issues. We need to think these things through before or while the technology is developed. Otherwise, we risk losing control of our creations due to a lack of foresight, or creating even more social and ethical problems.