Lifestyle
Will Tesla Autopilot Have an Ethical Component?
Should autonomous driving algorithms take ethical considerations into account? Yes, say researchers in a new study and the MIT Technology Review.
[Source: MIT Technology Review]
Fast forward a few years and you find your self-driving Tesla rounding a corner, only to find 10 pedestrians in the road ahead. There are walls on either side of the road that will kill or seriously injure you if your car crashes into them. How should the autonomous driving algorithm handle that situation?
Three researchers — Jean-Francois Bonnefon of the Department of Management Research at the Toulouse School of Economics, Azim Shariff of the Department of Psychology at the University of Oregon, and Iyad Rahwan of the Media Laboratory at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology posed that question to hundreds of people using Amazon’s Mechanical Turk, an online crowdsourcing tool.
According to a report published on Arxiv, most people are willing to sacrifice the driver in order to save the lives of others. 75% thought the best ethical solution was to swerve, but only 65% thought cars would actually be programmed to do so. Not surprisingly, the number of people who said the car should swerve dropped dramatically when they were asked to place themselves behind the wheel, rather than some faceless stranger.
“On a scale from -50 (protect the driver at all costs) to +50 (maximize the number of lives saved), the average response was +24,” the researchers wrote. “Results suggest that participants were generally comfortable with utilitarian autonomous vehicles (AVs), programmed to minimize an accident’s death toll,” according to a report on IFL Science.
The legal issues presented by this research could not be more complex. In theory, legislators and regulators could require that autonomous driving algorithms include an unemotional “greater good” ethical component. But what if those laws or regulations allow manufacturers to offer various levels of ethical behavior? If a buyer knowingly chooses an option that provides less protection for innocent bystanders, will that same buyer then be legally responsible for what the car’s software decides to do?
“It is a formidable challenge to define the algorithms that will guide AVs confronted with such moral dilemmas,” the researchers wrote. “We argue to achieve these objectives, manufacturers and regulators will need psychologists to apply the methods of experimental ethics to situations involving AVs and unavoidable harm.”
An article in the MIT Technology Review entitled “Why Self-Driving Cars Must Be Programmed to Kill,” argues that because self-driving cars are inherently safer than human drivers, that in and of itself creates a new dilemma. “If fewer people buy self-driving cars because they are programmed to sacrifice their owners, then more people are likely to die because ordinary cars are involved in so many more accidents,” the MIT article says. “The result is a Catch-22 situation.”
In the summary to their study, the researchers argue, “Figuring out how to build ethical autonomous machines is one of the thorniest challenges in artificial intelligence today. As we are about to endow millions of vehicles with autonomy, taking algorithmic morality seriously has never been more urgent.”
Related Autopilot News
- Tesla Autopilot emergency saves driver from head-on collision
- Who is responsible when Tesla Autopilot results in a crash?
- Upcoming Tesla Autopilot 1.01 will have several new improvements
- Tesla Building Next Gen Maps through its Autopilot Drivers
Elon Musk has been pretty open about the idea of FSD being the difference maker for Tesla’s future.
If Tesla succeeds in achieving FSD, it could become the world’s most valuable company. If it doesn’t, then the company would not be able to reach its optimum potential.
FSD Supervised’s safety benefits:
- But even if FSD is still not perfect today, FSD Supervised is already making a difference on the roads today.
- This was highlighted in Tesla’s Q4 2024 Vehicle Safety Report.
- As per Tesla, it recorded one crash for every 5.94 million miles driven in which drivers were using Autopilot technology.
- For comparison, the most recent data available from the NHTSA and FHWA (from 2023) showed that there was one automobile crash every 702,000 miles in the United States.
This morning, Tesla FSD proved to be an absolute godsend. I had to take my brother-in-law to the hospital in Sugar Land, TX, which is 40 miles away, at the ungodly hour of 4 AM. Both of us were exhausted, and he was understandably anxious about the surgery.
— JC Christopher (@JohnChr08117285) January 29, 2025
The convenience of…
FSD user’s tale:
- As per an FSD user’s post on social media platform X, FSD Supervised was able to help him drive a relative to a medical facility safely even if he was exhausted.
- During the trip, the driver only had to monitor FSD Supervised’s performance to make sure the Tesla operated safely.
- In a vehicle without FSD, such a trip with an exhausted driver would have been quite dangerous.
- “This morning, Tesla FSD proved to be an absolute godsend. I had to take my brother-in-law to the hospital in Sugar Land, TX, which is 40 miles away, at the ungodly hour of 4 AM. Both of us were exhausted, and he was understandably anxious about the surgery.
- “The convenience of sending the hospital’s address directly from my iPhone to my Tesla while still inside my house, then just a single button press once inside, and 40 miles later we were precisely in front of the hospital’s admissions area.This experience really underscores just how transformative this technology can be for society,” Tesla owner JC Christopher noted in his post.
Don’t hesitate to contact us with news tips. Just send a message to simon@teslarati.com to give us a heads up.
There are few things that prove an enthusiast’s love towards a company more than a dedicated short film. This was highlighted recently when YouTube’s SoKrispyMedia posted a 10-minute action movie starring Optimus, Tesla’s humanoid robot, as well as several of the company’s most iconic products.
The video:
- Shot like a Hollywood action flick, the video featured a rather humorous plot involving a group of thieves that mistakenly targeted a Tesla Model 3 driver.
- The Model 3 driver then ended up speaking to Tesla for assistance, and some high-octane and high-speed hijinks ensued.
- While the short film featured several Tesla products like the Model 3, Superchargers, and the Cybertruck, it is Optimus that truly stole the show.
- Optimus served several roles in the short film, from an assistant in a Tesla office to a “robocop” enforcer that helped out the Model 3 driver.
Future Robo-cop @Tesla_Optimus
— SOKRISPYMEDIA (@sokrispymedia) January 12, 2025
full video: https://t.co/TXpSRhcP5K pic.twitter.com/YFHZ7siAP7
Cool inside jokes:
- The best Tesla videos are those that show an in-depth knowledge of the company, and SoKrispyMedia definitely had it.
- From the opening scenes alone, the video immediately poked fun at TSLA traders, the large number of gray Tesla owners, and the fact that many still do not understand Superchargers.
- The video even poked fun at Tesla’s software updates, as well as how some Tesla drivers use Autopilot or other features without reading the fine print in the company’s release notes.
- The video ended with a tour de force of references to Elon Musk products, from the Tesla Cybertruck to the Boring Company Not-a-Flamethrower, which was released back in 2018.
Check out SoKrispyMedia’s Tesla action short film in the video below.
Don’t hesitate to contact us with news tips. Just send a message to simon@teslarati.com to give us a heads up.
Tesla definitely seems to be determined to release the coolest lineup of accessories for its coolest vehicle. As could be seen in an update to the Tesla Shop, the electric vehicle maker has now launched a metal key card for the Cybertruck—because why not?
Cybertruck keys:
- The Cybertruck, similar to Tesla’s other vehicles, is shipped with a regular key card.
- The vehicle could also be accessed and locked through a phone key.
- As per the Cybertruck’s Owner’s Manual, the all-electric pickup truck is capable of supporting a total of 19 keys.
The Cybertruck’s Metal Key Card:
- Tesla’s Cybertruck Metal Key Card functions much like the vehicle’s regular key card, but it is finished using premium stainless steel
- As per Tesla’s description of the item:
- “Convenient, durable, versatile. The Cybertruck Metal Key Card is a premium stainless-steel alternative to our traditional plastic key cards, making it easy to access your Cybertruck without your Phone Key. Ideal for when your phone is unavailable or when sharing your vehicle with a friend or valet.”
- The Cybertruck Metal Key Card costs $60.
- In comparison, the Cybertruck’s regular key card is sold for $40.
- The Cybertruck Metal Key Card comes with the metal key card itself, as well as a bifold key card wallet.
Tesla Cybertruck merch push:
- Being the company’s most eye-catching vehicle, it is no surprise that that Tesla has been releasing quite a lot of merchandise inspired by the all-electric pickup truck.
- These include a $250 levitating Cybertruck model, as well as a $35 Cybertruck wind-up racer, both of which are out of stock.
- Tesla also sells the $35 “CyberMug,” a $40 “CyberStein,” and a $50 “CyberVessel.”
- Other Cybertruck-inspired merchandise are the $60 Cyberwhistle Stealth, and the $50 CyberOpener.
Don’t hesitate to contact us with news tips. Just send a message to simon@teslarati.com to give us a heads up.
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