Assignment:
Write an article or website and summarize why it might provide further insight with 3 sentences summary for the following text:
Autonomous driving is a disruptive technology that I find very interesting. There are many companies such as Ford, Mercedes and Tesla that are racing to build autonomous vehicles. Ford has recently tripled its investment in its autonomous vehicle fleet and is testing 30 autonomous Ford Fusion hybrids in California, Michigan and Arizona. Of course with such a huge advance in transportation technology there are some significant potential impacts that this would have on people’s everyday lives.
When looking at traffic from above you would see a large number of vehicles pursuing their own trajectories through a maze of roads.
Autonomous driving would not seem to change this very much except for when you consider that companies such as Ford, Uber, and BMW explain that fleets of self-driving cars will emerge. This creates a large difference, rather than completing the individual’s trip as quickly as possible, fleet management will seek to maximize throughput of all of its vehicles – for the fleet as a whole. This could cause some differences when you look at an individual’s route to commute to and from destinations as well as the time it takes to travel.
Autonomous driving could also offer some huge advantages to the average working employee. Not having to worry about your daily commute to work would give people on average of 25.4 minutes one way to do some other activities such as start doing some work, catch up on sleep, or even relax and stream television shows. Some other advantages are less car accidents, saving time and fuel, and improved traffic efficiency.
Self-driving technologies could also affect some job markets. One primary concern is raised by the commercial trucking industry. There are approximately 1.6 million American truck drivers in 2014. Earning a mean income of about $42,000 which equates to about 0.3% of the US GDP. With the loss of jobs there will also be billions of dollars for the economy lost and will place additional pressure on the nation’s unemployment lines. There are also other jobs that could be rendered useless such as taxi, Uber, school bus, and transit bus drivers.
Since my company, Axalta Coating Systems, is a major automotive supplier for OEM exterior and interior paint they could be effected by the changes that autonomous driving would create. Having safer commutes for people would mean less car crashes and would then drop our sales in the refinish business by a significant margin. On the other hand, our OEM sales could rise because there would be more people who buy new cars on a regular basis to ensure that their safety is maximized. All in all, Axalta Coating Systems would be directly affected by the autonomous driving market.
References:
Manyika, J., Chui, M., Bughin, J., Dobbs, R., Bisson, P., & Marrs, A. (2013, May). Disruptive technologies: Advances that will transform life, business, and the global economy. McKinsey Global Institute. Retrieved from https://www.mckinsey.com/insights/business_technology/disruptive_technologies
Driverless Future. (2017). Workshop: Self-driving cars - strategic implications for the auto industry. Retrieved from https://www.driverless-future.com/?cat=26
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