Guilt-tripping in a car that drives itself

It was quite a week at the AI Engineer World’s Fair in SF. Outside the conference my highlights were catching up with old friends and getting on a self-driving Waymo. A freakin’ car that takes you wherever you want in the city without a driver, skillfully avoiding an intoxicated pedestrian, bikes and a dense column of smoke out of nowhere. Soon we are going to look back at this and feel nostalgia for the time where self-driving cars surprised us. But for now, let me marvel at how far we’ve come. We truly live in the future. I couldn’t avoid thinking that SF visitors used to line up to get on the cable car, now they take selfies as they see a self-driving car, let alone ride in one.

I’m definitely a techno-optimist and look forward to seeing how much safer roads will become. But the first ride didn’t start as a joyous moment. I needed my first ride from the famous San Francisco Pier to go back to my hotel. I was right in front of a taxi station where taxis, ride-hailing app cars, and for-rent limos were all waiting for customers. Easily 10 people waiting for a few of my bucks, and a few more around waiting to be called via Uber/Lyft. It felt tasteless to request a self-driving car -which was actually more expensive- and have it pick me up in front of them. So I walked a couple of blocks and have it pick me up on a secluded alley. I have no doubt that displaced workers will eventually find something at least as good (more on this on my next post). In the meantime, let’s be mindful that while Adam Smith’s hand may be invisible, it can grab some by the throat really roughly until things fall into place again.

The second ride didn’t have this guilt and was actually hilarious. The car looped twice around a square to figure out a “safe place” to stop (it had been safe all along, it was quite deserted). We ended up opening the door and finishing the trip somewhat abruptly. Pick-up and drop-off were the weakest point on both rides. Humans are pretty good at interpreting rules and conventions more flexibly and make micro-infractions to provide you with more convenience.

Why did I pick a second ride if I had these feelings with the first one? Simply put, I think the technology is beyond cool, and we should be entitled to our little contradictions. It’s such a humane trait, after all.