Technology

No, you’re thinking of Amazon.

No they just got a few dozens good lawyers instead if the lawsuits costts less than the profits and you get publicity out of it then that's business for ya

Hmm, so only on a very small number of predetermined routes, and at very slow speeds for those roads.

Still impressive, but not as impressive as the headline makes out.

I've seen this headline a few times and the details are laughably bad. The only reason this can be getting any press is because the headline is good clickbait. But 40 mph top speed on approved roads in 2 states only if a car is in front of you in the daytime is entirely useless. I guess it's a good first step maybe? But trying to write headlines like this is big news is sad.

Those cars cost well over $100k each. The demographic buying that doesn’t care about $2500.

Assuming a functional legal system, they'd be liable for damages if they lie about product safety.

They actually did get certified by an authority

I believe Mercedes takes responsibility if there is an accident while driving autonomously.

Berkshire Hathaway owns Geico the car insurance company. In one of his annual letters Buffett said that autonomous cars are going to be great for humanity and bad for insurance companies.

“If [self-driving cars] prove successful and reduce accidents dramatically, it will be very good for society and very bad for auto insurers.”

Actuaries are by definition bad at assessing new risk. But as data get collected they quickly adjust to it. There are a lot of cars so if driverless cars become even a few percent of cars on the road they will quickly be able to build good actuarial tables.

According to who? Did the NTSB clear this?

Yes.

If this thing fucks up and kills somebody, will the judge let the driver off the hook 'cuz the manufacturer told them everything’s cool?

Yes, the judge will let the driver off the hook, because Mercedes told them it will assume the liability instead.

I mean that's exactly what the driver would do, I'm not sure why this is controversial

We could make it work on a guide line and attach a bunch of trailers to one truck. You're a genius.

yeah that would be great. Say, you can save on that a little if you put wheel guides on the road since theyre all headed in the same direction, and maybe you can replace the tires with something that fits into that guide pretty well so that you don’t have to replace them as much. Matter of fact, all of these trucks can become electric if they run electricity through the track or above it. This is a revolutionary idea!!

Because it's an extremely narrowly defined set of requirements in order to use it. It's "approved freeways with clear markings and moderate to heavy traffic under 40MPH during daytime hours and clear conditions" meaning it will inch forward for you in bumper to bumper traffic provided you're in an approved area and that's it.

https://www.mbusa.com/en/owners/manuals/drive-pilot

They got certification from the authorities, and in the event of an accident, the manufacturer takes on responsibility.