Science Fiction Dictionary
A  B  C  D  E  F  G  H  I  J  K  L  M  N  O  P  Q  R  S  T  U  V  W  X  Y  Z

 

A Baker's Dozen Of Autonomous Car-Related Revolutions

Take a look at this incredible lineup of industries that face revolutionary change in the face of autonomous vehicle technology.

Insurance
McKinsey predicts they could reduce US auto accidents by 90%. While this might save insurers money on payouts in the near future, demand for insurance will ultimately decrease as risks of a car crash drop.

Auto Repair
Fewer accidents will also mean fewer trips to the body shop. On top of that, mechanics’ traditional expertise will become less valuable as cars become more connected and software-dependent.

Truckers and Drivers
Driverless automobiles will reduce demand for truckers, taxi drivers, and other driving professionals.

Hotels
The proliferation of driverless cars will cut into another big portion of hotels’ customer bases: those who opt for a single-night stay at a roadside motel while driving from one place to another.

Airlines
Once autonomous vehicles make car travel more convenient, many people will choose to take an on-demand car ride for shorter trips instead of going through the many hassles of air travel.

Auto Parts Manufacturing
... smart driving software, like brake assists, will put less wear-and-tear on cars, necessitating fewer replacements.

Taxis/Ride Sharing
... it’s entirely possible that the hardware aspect of driverless cars will quickly become commoditized.

Public Transportation
Why wait around for a bus that will drop you off five blocks from your destination when a driverless car can show up at your doorstep immediately and take you exactly where you want to go?

Parking Garages/Lots
According to McKinsey, [autonomous] fleets could save 61 billion square feet of unnecessary parking space in the US alone.

Fast Food
In self-driving cars, people will simply input the coordinates of their destination, reducing the chance that they will decide to take a detour for an impulse food purchase.

Energy/Petroleum
... the already interrelated shifts toward electric and autonomous vehicles like Tesla’s Model S do suggest that there could be a depressed demand for gasoline itself.

Real Estate
...faster and easier commutes will shift residential property value from properties in urban centers to those in surburban areas.

Media/Entertainment Industry
The average American drives 46 minutes each day, and without having to keep their eyes on the road, they’ll have plenty of time to consume news and entertainment.

David H. Keller gives an amazingly accurate look ahead in his 1935 story The Living Machine:

Old people began to cross the continent in their own cars. Young people found the driverless car admirable for petting. The blind for the first time were safe. Parents found they could more safely send their children to school in the new car than in the old cars with a chauffeur.
(Read more about Keller's driverless car)

Autonomous cars have been a familiar topic for Technovelgy readers; I think I've explored facets of this topic you might not have seen elsewhere:

Be sure to read this article 13 Industries Other Than Auto That Driverless Cars Could Turn Upside Down, which contains more details, as well as great reference links.

Scroll down for more stories in the same category. (Story submitted 4/27/2016)

Follow this kind of news @Technovelgy.

| Email | RSS | Blog It | Stumble | del.icio.us | Digg | Reddit |

Would you like to contribute a story tip? It's easy:
Get the URL of the story, and the related sf author, and add it here.

Comment/Join discussion ( 0 )

Related News Stories - (" Vehicle ")

CAVForth Autonomous Bus Of Scotland
'Buses without drivers moved close to the curb and stopped...' - Henry Kuttner, 1946.

Seoul Self-Driving 42dot Bus Unveiled
'Buses without drivers moved close to the curb and stopped at intervals.' - Henry Kuttner, 1946.

Electric Jet Boats From Enevate and Sealence Collab
An interesting application for batteries; pushing a heavy boat through a fluid like water will be difficult.

Alcohol-Sensing Cars - NTSB Catches Up With Philip K. Dick (1963)
'Mr. Garden, you are in no condition to drive....' - Philip K. Dick, 1963.

 

Google
  Web TechNovelgy.com   

Technovelgy (that's tech-novel-gee!) is devoted to the creative science inventions and ideas of sf authors. Look for the Invention Category that interests you, the Glossary, the Invention Timeline, or see what's New.

 

 

 

 

Science Fiction Timeline
1600-1899
1900-1939
1940's   1950's
1960's   1970's
1980's   1990's
2000's   2010's

Current News

Japan's LignoSat Space Wood Satellite And Dan Simmons' Treeship
'The Consul remembered his first glimpse of the kilometer-long treeship...'

Skyline Robotics Instantiates Heinlein's 'Window Willie' Skyscraper Robot
'Do you know what window washing used to cost by the hour?'

Drone Bombings In Moscow Foreseen 100 Years Ago
'Once the target is confirmed, it uses an IR laser to send a coded signal back to the parent, clearing it to attack.'

I Didn't Know You Can Already Buy Flesh Putty
'I filled your bullet hole with flesh putty and the lattice.'

'A Sign in Space' Gives Practice In Decoding ET Messages
'... it will be easy to form an alphabet which shall enable us to converse with the inhabitants of the moon.'

Melting Permafrost Endangers Infrastructure
'From the tower's huge octagonal base radiate wide silvery strips...'

EELS Exobiology Extant Life Surveyor For Enceladus
'It was about five feet long... a black bullet head and red camera eyes.'

Lazy Lawyer's Trust In ChatGPT Misplaced
'The Law Society has strict rules on the use of pseudo-intelligent software...'

Paradromics Implant FDA 'Breakthrough Device'
'I used my implant to tell MILLIE what we wanted...'

Mice, At Least, Can Sober Up Quickly
'Then draw some aldodote-vitamin pills from the medic.'

Is It Time For Lunar Farside Telescopes?
'Mount Ambarzumian Observatory, on Farside.'

Spaceflight Vertigo Solved By NASA Releasing The Kraken
"I threw up in my helmet."

TM-62 Loitering Ground Landmine
Runaway movie comes to life!

Helpful Robots In Science Fiction
'If you douse me again... I'm donating you to a city college.'

Lunar Pogo Stick - Retro Technovelgy From 1968
'Lucky touched the leap knob...'

MIT And Rice Create Blade Runner Photo Analysis
Rick Deckard, your photo analysis is ready.

More SF in the News Stories

More Beyond Technovelgy science news stories

Home | Glossary | Invention Timeline | Category | New | Contact Us | FAQ | Advertise |
Technovelgy.com - where science meets fiction™

Copyright© Technovelgy LLC; all rights reserved.