What I want from full self driving is something at least close to hiring a professional chauffeur. I’ve had to do this a few times in Europe. The driver pulls up in an immaculate Mercedes sedan, he drives precisely and carefully with an expert understanding of local traffic and road conditions. This is something I’ve also experienced in Tokyo in every taxi I’ve hailed on the street (except for the brand of vehicle).

Out of politeness I engage in chit-chat with the drivers, but I would be completely comfortable reading hacker news in the backseat or even sleeping. I hope self-driving reaches this level of ability soon; I’m going to be to old to drive in 15 years.

To get a perspective of what this requires, reflect carefully on what your brain is attending to while you drive. Does it ever require higher levels of reasoning than pattern matching? It does for me. I regularly encounter issues that would confuse current technology: bad fog, reckless drivers, icing on overpasses, drivers going the wrong way, a marathon blocking my route, boisterous junior high-school students walking along the curb, detours, temporary lanes inconsistent with actual markings, broken traffic lights, and damaged or vandalized traffic signs. I could sleep soundly on my way being driven by a professional driver under such circumstances.