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Driverless cars may be in their infancy, but they’re certainly generating a lot of interest. Most major car companies, as well as several startups, have autonomous vehicle projects in the works. While most current designs blend sensor- and AI-enabled navigation with the ability for the human operator to take over, most companies building autonomous vehicles envision a future in which the automobile itself handles all the driving.
While truly “driverless” cars may not be widely available for some time to come, there is potential for the autonomous vehicles of the future to do a lot more than just take passengers from point A to point B. Below, 14 industry experts from Forbes Technology Council share their predictions for features future driverless will offer their passengers.
1. Fully Functioning Office Spaces
We make the best use of long commutes by making work calls or listening to podcasts; however, that’s soon to change. In the near future, driverless cars will act as fully functioning mobile offices. Equipped with Wi-Fi and served by 5G networks, these futuristic cars will be a staple for the modern business person, adding an entirely new avenue of productivity into the workforce. - Marc Fischer, Dogtown Media LLC
2. Additional Entertainment Options
The driverless car arena has been filled with hype for many years, but the bridge to full autonomy is long. With that in mind, I think self-driving cars will become mobile offices, shuttles or delivery units and be relegated to niche, low-speed routes in large cities or basic planned routes. These vehicles can provide more entertainment options and increased safety features and will be highly customizable. - Ernie Bray, AutoClaims Direct Inc. (ACD)
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3. Ability To Learn Routines And Preferences
Driverless cars can leverage their machine learning capabilities to learn the routines and preferences of their passengers, thereby providing greater assistance by automatically performing routine tasks such as ensuring on-time arrival for work or appointments, finding a cheap parking spot in dense cities or preferentially driving to stores where specific, desired products are in stock. - Sreekanth Mallikarjun, Reorg
4. Enhanced Safety Features
Ironically, the feature that will get the most attention is safety. We need regulations that define ethics for the algorithms and tech that does a better job detecting other objects and levels of traffic, so the fastest route is exactly that. We’re close, and 5G will help. Even further in the future, autonomous cars that fly would be awesome. Does that sound like sci-fi? I can only say that the Jetsons are not as “out of this world” as they used to be. - Robert Strzelecki, TenderHut
5. Safe Driving Modes
Young kids are very eager to get their learner’s permits, which is a big source of anxiety for parents. I feel a safe driving mode will help relieve parents—the mode will always be on, and the kick that young drivers get out of speeding will be kept under control. - Bhavna Juneja, Infinity, a Stamford Technology Company
6. Additional Cargo Capacity
Simple cargo capacity will be game-changing. Being able to load a driverless car or truck with cargo and set the destination to deliver goods to a recipient across the city will provide a much-needed revolution for the mail and package delivery industries. Adding larger batteries in place of passenger space would increase range and allow for interstate deliveries. - Greg Young, Uniform Law Commission
7. Better Privacy And Cybersecurity Features
Future driverless cars will incorporate more privacy and security features. Firewalls in cars will be normalized. Protection of the driver’s data will become paramount, and it will likely be regulated. You can tell a lot about someone based on where, when and how they drive. Advertisers would love to get their hands on that data, and hackers would love to exploit it. We have to protect it. - Jerich Beason, Epiq
8. Enhanced Accessibility
Driverless cars will enrich our lives in many ways. They’ll provide new levels of accessibility, allowing people who currently aren’t able to drive to move freely and safely. While AVs are in their infancy, we’re also eager to see developments that optimize and personalize rider experiences, allowing commuters to stream entertainment, video chat with co-workers or scan social feeds. - Brett Wheatley, TransLoc
9. In-Vehicle Advertising
Advertising will be a big part of the experience at some point. While on the way to your destination, you’ll be able to add a stop for shopping or food, and companies will be vying for that recommendation. At a glance, you’ll be able to see the extra time needed and be able to order in transit. You’ll be able to avoid the ads by paying more, but many will want to subsidize their travel costs. - Luke Wallace, Bottle Rocket
10. Shared Ownership Options
Shared ownership will be a bonus of future self-driving cars. The real value of self-driving cars is that they can be used by someone else when you don’t need them. Current cars have no value except when they’re in use. Self-driving cars can be used as part of ride-sharing services or within partial ownership agreements with nearby families. This will reduce the number of cars we need, making driving more sustainable without loss of convenience. - Kevin Parikh, Avasant
11. Customizable Interiors
Future driverless cars will feature configurable interiors that will allow them to be transitioned from multi-person vehicles to offices, entertainment spaces and service locations. Also, they will be extremely useful for people who are elderly, disabled or in wheelchairs who need assistance getting in and out of the vehicle. - Laureen Knudsen, Broadcom
12. Augmented Reality Navigation
Future vehicles will have the entire windshield to use for augmented reality systems, thus giving passengers the ability to summon augmented reality navigation systems on the screens. This will allow data such as directions and location to be projected onto the windshield, transforming the driving experience. - Roman Taranov, Ruby Labs
13. Robust Communications Systems
Future driverless cars will be able to communicate with each other as well as with retailers and restaurants, enabling curbside and drive-through pickups. Authorized e-commerce companies will be able to access and deliver items directly to the vehicle’s trunk. Additionally, driverless cars will offer a variety of interiors, including living room, office workspace and entertainment room options, and cameras will be connected to the home security system. - Selva Pandian, DemandBlue
14. Hybrid Road And Air Capabilities
The driverless cars of the future will feature drone-like capabilities of flight, leveraging both road and air travel. Once the airspace regulations and infrastructure are updated to enable this type of hybrid model, autonomous vehicle fleets at scale could be realized, because they would not be interacting with human-driven machines while in transit. - Thomas Helfrich, System Soft Technologies
