If we rewound the clock back to 2015, many consulting firms and industry pundits were forecasting that by now more than half of the cars on the road would be full-self-driving, and vehicle ownership would have largely evolved to an on-demand subscription model.
Fast forward a decade, and it is looking increasingly likely that Level 5 autonomy — which would allow a car to drive itself without any human intervention — won’t happen during most of our lifetimes.
It seems like the experts grossly underestimated the complexity (and cost) of AI models needed to simulate the human brain’s ability to process moving objects around the vehicle.
Having said that, we have experienced tremendous opportunities for full autonomy in the industrial segment: factories, warehouses, mining, construction, and agriculture. Anywhere that human passengers and bystanders aren’t at risk.