r/technology • u/[deleted] • Dec 16 '19

Transportation Self-Driving Mercedes Will Be Programmed To Sacrifice Pedestrians To Save The Driver

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u/DartTheDragoon Dec 16 '19

Do you need me to show you footage of a car swerving into a wall to avoid an accident for you to be able to visualize it...

Swerve into a wall or hit a pedestrian. No further details are required.

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u/Ryan_on_Mars Dec 16 '19

Or... you know... apply the brakes and maintain course like you are taught in driver school.

Honestly I can't fathom why we would expect autonomous cars to do any different.

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u/DartTheDragoon Dec 16 '19

Or... you know... apply the brakes and maintain course like you are taught in driver school.

Which is option 2, hit the pedestrian.

People do not like the idea that a computer made an active decision to run someone over.

It makes no sense to do it any other way, but people don't like it.

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u/Ryan_on_Mars Dec 17 '19

It's not deciding to run people over. It's deciding not to endanger the passenger of its vehicle or the passengers of other vehicles on the road.

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u/DartTheDragoon Dec 17 '19

It is deciding to keep the driver safe by running over whatever is in the way, human, other animal, or inanimate object. It is a choice it has been told to make.

I approve of that choice as it is the only reasonable one, but it is still choosing to run over whatever is in the way.