When people talk about their fears around AI, autonomous technology and self-driving cars, it’s usually about safety.
It’s something vehicle manufacturers, governments and vehicle safety campaigners can all agree on – nailing the safety tech is crucial before a proper rollout…
So, when Waymo obliged with a feature that helps their vehicles avoid low speed collisions by honking their horns when another vehicle gets too close, it seemed like a sensible plan.
That is unless you’re a resident in San Francisco who happens to live near the parking lot where a fleet of Waymo driverless vehicles were parked.
Because dozens of the driverless cars managed to spend an entire night honking at each other simply because they were parked near each other.
The software appears not to have registered that all of the vehicles were stationary, meaning that it was a long sleepless night for a lot of people…
While the thinking behind the feature is admirable, it’s an example of how technology in vehicles can bring up new problems for us to solve.
The good news is that a software patch has been introduced that prevents it from happening again, with the cars now able to spot when another vehicle is stationary.
An unintended symphony from an orchestra of driverless cars might sound like a far-fetched sci-fi movie plot, but sometimes life is stranger than fiction.
