The arrival of autonomous vehicles (AVs) has not been as quick or smooth as expected. Richard Holman, Head of Foresight and Trends at GM, remarked in 2016 that full AVs could be on the road by 2020 or sooner. The same year, Mark Fields, then-Chief Executive of Ford, announced that the automaker planned to offer fully self-driving vehicles by 2021. At the time of writing, however, the technology remains in its nascency.
This can be attributed in part to serious concerns among the general public about safety. A 2023 survey of 2,000 US citizens conducted by Forbes Legal concluded that 93% are “concerned” about the safety or overall merits of self-driving technology. A further 61% reported that they would not trust a self-driving car with their loved ones or children. However, there are also signs that the technology is not progressing as quickly as initially expected. A 2023 study by research firm GlobalData predicted that the AV industry would not be capable of developing an SAE Level 5 autonomous vehicle until 2035.
