Self-driving cars as a target for philanthropy

Abstract

Self-driving cars could create social value in accident reduction, cost savings, and increased time efficiency. Since automakers and markets have little incentive to invest in accelerating their production and adoption beyond market demand, self-driving cars represent a promising target for philanthropic investment. Ways by which to increase the development and adoption of self-driving cars could take the form of research and development funding, increased testing, lobbying and legal intervention, and advertising and public relations. However, it should be noted that political and market forces favoring the private adoption of self-driving cars can be overestimated. Despite these uncertainties, self-driving cars represent a cost-effective philanthropic opportunity due to their high social value compared to the the relatively modest cost of intervention. – AI-generated abstract.