California's Democratic governor has vetoed a bill that would have required human drivers to be on board self-driving trucks.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — California Gov. Gavin Newsom has vetoed a bill to require human drivers on board self-driving trucks, a measure that union leaders and truck drivers said would save hundreds of thousands of jobs in the state.

  • @Cryophilia
    2•1 year ago

    There will be testing on public roads whether you like it or not, it’s inherent to how any new thing works.

    • queermunist she/her
      -4•1 year ago

      We have ways to test new technologies before unleashing them onto the public, what are you talking about? Even if it’s necessary to test them on public roads, they could be limited to only certain roads so people who don’t want to be part of he experiment don’t have to risk their lives.

      • @Cryophilia
        2•1 year ago

        No matter how much testing they get beforehand, at some point they’ll be on public roads. And when they first get access to public roads, that will be a test. That’s just the only possible way for any new technology to come into being.

        • queermunist she/her
          -4•1 year ago

          Okay, think about medication.

          They test it before it gets regulatory approval. Once the testing is done it goes to the broad public because they’re found to be safe when used as directed. At no point do they experiment on people without their consent.

          Obviously data is still collected after that, but that’s not the same as testing - are you conflating those two things? Because by your definition, testing never ends.

          • @Cryophilia
            2•1 year ago

            Obviously data is still collected after that, but that’s not the same as testing

            Semantics. It’s literally the same thing, just called something different.

            • queermunist she/her
              -4•1 year ago

              It’s not, because data is collected forever. By that definition testing never ends and we talk past each other about the meaning of words.

              There’s a review process. Drugs go through stages of steadily growing numbers of volunteers, but after that the test is over.

              That’s what I’d want. Phase 1, these vehicles are tested on private land by highly skilled voluneers. Stage 2, they’re tested on private land by laypersons. Phase 3, they’re tested on a wide (but limited!) scale across selected public roads and highways.

              And then testing is done. At no point is someone subjected to being tested against their will, they always have the ability to opt out. After that they’ll still collect data, but it’s not an experiment anymore because they’re already generally recognized as safe by regulators.