Elon Musk Blasts Critical Coverage of Self-Driving Cars: 'You're Killing People'

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I give Elon Musk a lot of credit for being a very, very smart guy, but to say negative press about self-driving cars "is killing people" is a bit of a stretch no matter how you look at it.

During a conference call announcing that all Tesla vehicles will now have self-driving hardware, Elon Musk slammed the media on Wednesday for its close coverage of autonomous vehicle accidents, blaming journalists for any deaths involving conventional cars that may occur as a result. “Writing an article that’s negative, you’re effectively dissuading people from using autonomous vehicles, you’re killing people,” said Musk.

 
In his mind, statistically, the number of deaths per mile driven between human-piloted cars and auto-piloted cars is very significant. Autopilot cars are statistically much more safe. I see his point, and I don't really have an issue with his wording either, though I'm still not personally ready to give up control of my vehicle...
 
I don't think self driving cars will be completely safe until they're all tied into the Matrix and work together like drones. If the po-po's want you, they just direct the car to lock doors and deliver you to the police station.
 
The public safety nazis are going to take all the fun out of life sooner or later. May as well roll over and let it happen.
 
Taking into account the Tesla owners getting to where they are in life and even being able to afford a Tesla... AND all the disclaimers before you initiate autopilot, you'd think the drivers would be a tad smarter and have some common sense...
 
What happens when two autonomous vehicles avoid the same accident at the same time? Do they both head for the same shoulder of the road and crash? Do they talk to each other and decide who has to take the ditch?

Stuff I worry about when the autonomous cars are the norm on the roadways and there are only a few human driven cars left. :)
 
I see autonomous vehicles getting their own set of roads. I think having humans and AI driving together in any significant capacity isn't feasible.
 
Monkey God said:
Seriously? How does such a smart guy say such dumb things?
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Because today self driving cars are safer than human driven cars. Public perception contradicts this likely because it's easier to accept a death if it's a human error rather than a code/sensor error. To Musk's point, the media plays this up while not covering the safety implications.

However, yeah, I'm not giving up being in control any time in the near future, reguardless of the safety implications.
 
The news stories about the 'autopilot' name being dangerous sound like deliberate concern trolling to me.
 
kohl said:
I see autonomous vehicles getting their own set of roads. I think having humans and AI driving together in any significant capacity isn't feasible.
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Won't ever happen. Roads cost a LOT to build. There would never be enough public support to pay for two separate roadways. Just think of the implications there. Unrealistic.
 
I would love to send Elon a gif with Monty Python's killer cars right about now.
 
kohl said:
I see autonomous vehicles getting their own set of roads. I think having humans and AI driving together in any significant capacity isn't feasible.
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And that is the problem... I live in Florida where we have great roads but other parts of the country: not so much. If, for example, California or New York cannot maintain their roads properly than where are they going to get the money to build roads devoted to self-driving cars? It's unrealistic.

Somehow I suspect this push for self-driving cars is coming from academia. Some dorky professors have gotten the notion that self-driving cars is the cure for urban congestion. If they can make self-driving cars to be more "efficient" than humans than stifling congestion will be less of a problem. Making traffic flow more efficiently is only one small part of the issue and is likely insignificant relative to the inability of current roadways to handle the volume of cars during peak hours. Overload the roads with self-driving cars and you are still going to have congestion. Cars are still going to get flat tires. Cars are still going to break down. You will have problems with Gen 1 cars interacting with Gen 4 cars. etc. etc. There are countless real problems nobody is talking about.

It may take decades before self-driving cars are as good as the best human drivers...
 
It's just a matter of time before one of Elon's cars kills somebody -- autonomous or not. He's not immune.
 
It's actually sound logic, even if it's slightly drama-queen esque. If sensationalist journalism is dissuading people from using cars with autonomous safety features which are far more likely, statistically speaking, to not get in an accident, prevent an accident or limit the severity of an accident - then you are in effect working opposite of the goal to prevent bodily harm and accidental death.
 
amddragonpc said:
It's just a matter of time before one of Elon's cars kills somebody -- autonomous or not. He's not immune.
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I think this comment is what's sad. People will look at this and this will be the only important factor. Not the fact that the total number of deaths are going to go down. I completely understand the human nature aspect that will make this happen. I just find it unfortunate.
 
JL6speed said:
Taking into account the Tesla owners getting to where they are in life and even being able to afford a Tesla... AND all the disclaimers before you initiate autopilot, you'd think the drivers would be a tad smarter and have some common sense...
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Unfortunately some people are born into money / win the lottery and they haven't garnered common sense along the way.
 
Still haven't seen self driving cars drive during the winter, with snow and salt on the roads. Otherwise the market will be limited to places that never get snow.
 
Exavior said:
Aren't the cars the ones that are killing people? :)
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No, it's the stupid drunk/distracted/whatever people driving the cars that are killing people.

Unless you are being facetious in which case... ;)
 
I live in southern California; On any given day there are dozens of accidents caused by distractions, people eating, people on their phones, merging into each other, etc. And if someone dies you might hear a blip on the news about it but not typically. A self driving car gets rammed into, and it's not even it's fault, and that makes the evening news. "Those evil self driving cars!!!"

I'm with Elon on this, and statistics are also. Media creating hate for autonomous cars, and slowing down adoption and development, is killing people.
 
Riptide_NVN said:
Won't ever happen. Roads cost a LOT to build. There would never be enough public support to pay for two separate roadways. Just think of the implications there. Unrealistic.
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It will happen as they ban non-self driving cars from existing roads.
They will start with carpool lanes, toll lanes, and eventually most freeways/highways.
Eventually you will not be able to drive your car anywhere except surface streets.
 
If he is so confident that his product is, statistically safer than human drivers, then why doesn't he offer insurance for his customers?
 
fact, Tesla cars have killed people because of how the specifically implemented their auto pilot...
 
Taco said:
Because today self driving cars are safer than human driven cars. Public perception contradicts this likely because it's easier to accept a death if it's a human error rather than a code/sensor error. To Musk's point, the media plays this up while not covering the safety implications.
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They're not safer; Tesla driving assistance caused fatality rates only look decent compared to the US general fatality rate which includes motorcycle deaths, pedestrians, vehicles of all age, driven in all conditions and by drivers of all ages. Compared to other luxury cars, the fatality rate is much worse.
 
2 days ago I am at a stop light with a lady in the lane next to me. The light turns green and we both begin to accelerate at equal speeds. Then out of the fucking blue she decides she wants my lane and just starts merging like I'm not even there. I lay on the horn but of course her dumbass has a fucking 5 second reaction time so I have to veer off the fucking road into the emergency lane before she gets it. Then she drifts back into her lane and floors it to get ahead of me. Guy behind me on his motorcycle just shaking his head. I mean what the fuck, I was right beside you 5 seconds ago you dumb bitch, nothing has changed since then, how the hell you cant see me let alone think that lane is suddenly empty is beyond words. The world needs self-driving cars.
 
SLee said:
They're not safer; Tesla driving assistance caused fatality rates only look decent compared to the US general fatality rate which includes motorcycle deaths, pedestrians, vehicles of all age, driven in all conditions and by drivers of all ages. Compared to other luxury cars, the fatality rate is much worse.
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Yes because the US is the only country in the world that suffers vehicular deaths. You want to see human drivers at work? Look at Russia. There are so many videos online of it it's a fucking miracle everyone isn't walking already. And to quote about 300 Russian citizens I have read comment on this "Oh yeah, this kinda thing is pretty normal around here, it's almost funny anymore". Seriously, human beings are flawed pilots of anything. We are susceptible to a massive array of distractions and mind altering anomalies computers just simply arn't.

By inherent design in how people vs computers operate. They will ALWAYS be more predictable and safe. They are not susceptible to the things we are. Your favorite song plays, you bang your head one time. In that span a walker decides to make a run for it. You just killed him. Just like that, computer driven cars will NEVER fall for that. What happens when two autonomous cars try avoid collision? Whatever they are programmed to, when it don't work, it changes, permanently. People aren't as easy to change nor is that change reliable or perfect, ever.

I drive nothing but driver's cars, I love my MR2 MK2, they will pry it from my cold dead hands, but I realize safety of human life is more important than my whims of enjoyment, just give me more track access, I'll make do. To note, in all my years driving like i do, with cars made to do it. I have never been in a accident, but they are called that for a reason and am under no illusion it's only a matter of time, not if. I'm human, therefore flawed, and subject to mistakes. And when that happens, someone, be it me or someone else, will pay for it. Intended or not. Computers can prevent this, period.
 
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nysmo said:
2 days ago I am at a stop light with a lady in the lane next to me. The light turns green and we both begin to accelerate at equal speeds. Then out of the fucking blue she decides she wants my lane and just starts merging like I'm not even there. I lay on the horn but of course her dumbass has a fucking 5 second reaction time so I have to veer off the fucking road into the emergency lane before she gets it. Then she drifts back into her lane and floors it to get ahead of me. Guy behind me on his motorcycle just shaking his head. I mean what the fuck, I was right beside you 5 seconds ago you dumb bitch, nothing has changed since then, how the hell you cant see me let alone think that lane is suddenly empty is beyond words. The world needs self-driving cars.
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Come to LA for a daily dose of anger.

I switched from a car to a big diesel truck and people get out of my way now. Makes life a little easier.
 
They say the same thing to gun rights advocates. Doing nothing is not the same as actively doing something. That's why you can unplug people from life support and it is not considered murder.

Surprised elon musk didn't say "nazi's"
 
Non causa pro causa, Elon. People are injured or die in vehicle accidents every day. The negative press on self-driving technology isn't causing that number to go up.
 
Armenius said:
Non causa pro causa, Elon. People are injured or die in vehicle accidents every day. The negative press on self-driving technology isn't causing that number to go up.
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Nuh uh! Someone somewhere just had an aneurysm getting so frustrated about people talking shit about their electric car - But it's green! Lithium mining strip mining is a lie! Whales! Communists! What! Child toucher! I saw you hug your child inappropriately the other day you communist whale killing pedo hugger I just ah! /stroke
 
Fuck you Elon.

Self driving cars haven't reached parity with the average driver in terms of accidents per mile driven. On top of that, NONE of the self drving car companies are actually putting up detailed number comparing the severity of accidents nor rates comparing self-driving vs. human under equivalent conditions. Google has been the most open, and so far, they are running about 98% of the performance of the average human driver while avoiding heavy raind, winter, shitty roads, etc. The average human driver includes all those thing plus DUI, driving distracted, drowsy driving, and other contributors to single vehicle accidents that automated vehicles DO do better.

Looking at the tesla self-driving video, the car drives like a cautious but not too skilled driver. It cuts the corner when turning almost every time.

They aren't ready yet. The problem is they likely ARE better than the worst human drivers. But they are also worse than the upper 50% of human drivers.
 
jamsomito said:
In his mind, statistically, the number of deaths per mile driven between human-piloted cars and auto-piloted cars is very significant. Autopilot cars are statistically much more safe. I see his point, and I don't really have an issue with his wording either, though I'm still not personally ready to give up control of my vehicle...
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Have they actually tested them on poor quality roads, in poor weather conditions? My understanding is most of the testing is being done in the Bay Area, which has excellent weather conditions and well defined roads. It rains roughly 30-40 days a year here.
 
kohl said:
I see autonomous vehicles getting their own set of roads. I think having humans and AI driving together in any significant capacity isn't feasible.
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No way, we won't get to have a choice. The stats will show that robot cars are life savers and autonomous capability will be required. Then we will basically be forced to use it with a few exceptions of course, like off road driving maybe. But the moment you take autopilot off and decide you want to drive, you will be forced to accept all responsibility for any accident even if your car isn't actually hit. Any accident near by will get blamed on the human driver. You won't dare take off that autopilot in most cases.

That's the future.
 
Vercinaigh said:
Yes because the US is the only country in the world that suffers vehicular deaths. You want to see human drivers at work? Look at Russia. There are so many videos online of it it's a fucking miracle everyone isn't walking already. And to quote about 300 Russian citizens I have read comment on this "Oh yeah, this kinda thing is pretty normal around here, it's almost funny anymore". Seriously, human beings are flawed pilots of anything. We are susceptible to a massive array of distractions and mind altering anomalies computers just simply arn't.

By inherent design in how people vs computers operate. They will ALWAYS be more predictable and safe. They are not susceptible to the things we are. Your favorite song plays, you bang your head one time. In that span a walker decides to make a run for it. You just killed him. Just like that, computer driven cars will NEVER fall for that. What happens when two autonomous cars try avoid collision? Whatever they are programmed to, when it don't work, it changes, permanently. People aren't as easy to change nor is that change reliable or perfect, ever.

I drive nothing but driver's cars, I love my MR2 MK2, they will pry it from my cold dead hands, but I realize safety of human life is more important than my whims of enjoyment, just give me more track access, I'll make do. To note, in all my years driving like i do, with cars made to do it. I have never been in a accident, but they are called that for a reason and am under no illusion it's only a matter of time, not if. I'm human, therefore flawed, and subject to mistakes. And when that happens, someone, be it me or someone else, will pay for it. Intended or not. Computers can prevent this, period.
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I am going to respectfully disagree.

We are talking about AI. How many games have you played where the AI was as good as a human player? How many games have you played where the AI sucked? A self-driving car is going to have an operating system and it is going to be using AI. All operating systems to date are buggy and all AI's are flawed and inferior to actual human's. The best human drivers will be better than the best self-driving cars. It will be a long time before the best AI is as good as a mediocre human driver...
 
Makes me put him in the same category as Cuomo on CNN telling me I'll go to jail for looking at Wikileaks, but he can ,so just I should listen to him tell me what to think.

Personally I'd like to run over both of them in my jeep.
 
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