Where Robot Cars (Robocars) Will Really Take Us

People have dreamed of cars that drive themselves for decades. Now, thanks to a contest sponsored by the U.S. military, they are much closer to becoming reality than many people realize. It now feels possible to make the bold prediction that if we, as a society truly will it, we can make them ubiquitous by around 2020. More and more people are ready to declare that — technology-wise — it’s a question of when, not if.

The technology behind this is fascinating, but even more interesting are other questions that surround the robot car future. Those issues include:

Why we must do it.

How we might get past the social and legal barriers.

How it will change energy, pollution, cities, transit, war, work, real estate and manufacturing — and yes, cars.

I’ll tell you why and how robocars can deal with much of this, and paint you a “roadmap” to this future. I’ll reveal why a number of the most interesting robocar results come from what they can do when they’re vacant.

Brad Templeton