I am no fan of this technology. These vehicles will wreck and a big rig that has been hacked is a truly frightening prospect to me.
But, the allure of this technology to the trucking industry is big. Here's why.
There is a tremendous shortage of truck drivers.
Drivers can only operate their trucks 8 - 10 hours (I believe) and then they have to rest.
Payroll and fringe benefits are about 75% of a typical company's expenses.
I can see these operating on rural highways and then drivers taking over when they get into an urban setting. I most sincerely hope these things are not allowed to run amok in urban settings or in areas prone to bad weather. But as that baseball philosopher Joaquin Andujar once said: "There is one word in America that says it all, and that one word is, 'You never know.'"
Unfortunately, there are powerful interests pushing this AI stuff, and until there is a huge failure (which will happen), we will have this forced on us.