The world of autonomous driving brings mobility to people who lack easy or practical access to driving, such as the elderly and disabled. It also appeals to the lifestyles and virtues embraced by millennials, such as health, entertainment, and mindfulness. As they technology matures towards the later stages of innovation, A.T. Kearney expects the following benefits to be especially powerful:
- Reduce traffic accidents by 70 percent, saving thousands of lives every year
- Lower vehicle service costs by 35 percent, in part because self-driving cars have far fewer mechanical wear-and-tear parts
- Cut energy consumption by 30 percent, not only because of alternative energy sources but also because automobiles can use car-to-car communications to swarm or travel in convoys (platoon driving), thus improving efficiency and traffic flow
- Reduce insurance liability by more than 15 percent as driving becomes much safer and new insurance models emerge
The estimated annual savings for the United States alone is expected to be around $1.3 trillion.
The Programmable World 