Rob Walling

And a lot of those are from people who – it's driver error. It's humans being tired, being drunk, being high. making mistakes, unable to see in certain conditions where an autonomous car can see through the rain or whatever, and humans might have difficulty or darkness, right? And so even if we take the low number of 90%, instead of 50,000 people dying each year, you're going to have 5,000.

And a lot of those are from people who – it's driver error. It's humans being tired, being drunk, being high. making mistakes, unable to see in certain conditions where an autonomous car can see through the rain or whatever, and humans might have difficulty or darkness, right? And so even if we take the low number of 90%, instead of 50,000 people dying each year, you're going to have 5,000.

It's an estimate, but even if they're off by a factor of two, it's just shocking. It's shocking. And I know there's a whole conversation, just like AI, there's a whole conversation around jobs. And I get it. And I am totally open to having that conversation. Not going to have it in this episode. It is much like self-checkout and much like robot manufacturing.

It's an estimate, but even if they're off by a factor of two, it's just shocking. It's shocking. And I know there's a whole conversation, just like AI, there's a whole conversation around jobs. And I get it. And I am totally open to having that conversation. Not going to have it in this episode. It is much like self-checkout and much like robot manufacturing.

You know, instead of humans putting a rivet in something, robots doing it in a Toyota plant. There's whole societal impacts that we have to deal with. But put all that aside. For this podcast, talking about startups, self-driving taxis are a thing. And if they came here to where I live in Minneapolis, 100%. I would be willing to take them.

You know, instead of humans putting a rivet in something, robots doing it in a Toyota plant. There's whole societal impacts that we have to deal with. But put all that aside. For this podcast, talking about startups, self-driving taxis are a thing. And if they came here to where I live in Minneapolis, 100%. I would be willing to take them.

And in fact, late nights when sometimes I'm concerned that my driver is super tired or the driver might be drunk, I would want a self-driving taxi. And here's the other thing. I have two teenagers. And at times, you know, there's Uber for teens, where as the parent, you kind of monitor what's happening. And so they can call a car. It tells you, you know, your child called a car.

And in fact, late nights when sometimes I'm concerned that my driver is super tired or the driver might be drunk, I would want a self-driving taxi. And here's the other thing. I have two teenagers. And at times, you know, there's Uber for teens, where as the parent, you kind of monitor what's happening. And so they can call a car. It tells you, you know, your child called a car.

to this location, and they try to give you the highest rated driver, like only 4.9 and up. And, you know, they take a bunch of safety precautions. I think they have background checks or whatever. I'm guessing they get more. It's the premium drivers, you know, it's a premium service. And then you can see the car the whole time and then you get notified when they get dropped off.

to this location, and they try to give you the highest rated driver, like only 4.9 and up. And, you know, they take a bunch of safety precautions. I think they have background checks or whatever. I'm guessing they get more. It's the premium drivers, you know, it's a premium service. And then you can see the car the whole time and then you get notified when they get dropped off.

But wouldn't that be even better if it was self-driving? Like the risk of someone doing something that you don't want to happen goes away because it is a self-driving car that pulls up and they get in and it's just incredible. Now, do I wish that mass transit was a thing? Yes. Do I wish in more US cities it was just buses and trains like in a lot of European cities that I visited? Of course.

But wouldn't that be even better if it was self-driving? Like the risk of someone doing something that you don't want to happen goes away because it is a self-driving car that pulls up and they get in and it's just incredible. Now, do I wish that mass transit was a thing? Yes. Do I wish in more US cities it was just buses and trains like in a lot of European cities that I visited? Of course.

Again, it's a conversation we can have about how society, you know, how America developed around cars and on and on and on. But

Again, it's a conversation we can have about how society, you know, how America developed around cars and on and on and on. But

self-driving cars are legit self-driving taxis specifically are amazing and then what i'm thinking is you know i have my brother lives in the bay area of california and he has this massive commute because traffic's so bad and as a result he bought a tesla purely for the self-driving because he spends so much time in the car each day like 90 minute commute each way think about it like that

self-driving cars are legit self-driving taxis specifically are amazing and then what i'm thinking is you know i have my brother lives in the bay area of california and he has this massive commute because traffic's so bad and as a result he bought a tesla purely for the self-driving because he spends so much time in the car each day like 90 minute commute each way think about it like that

And it allows him to be more present with other things rather than sitting there pushing a gas pedal. But when do true self-driving cars change the game, right? Not just taxis, but that my brother could drive and not even need to sit behind the wheel anymore. Because that's what Sherry and I were doing in Phoenix. We were in the back seat as the car drove itself.

And it allows him to be more present with other things rather than sitting there pushing a gas pedal. But when do true self-driving cars change the game, right? Not just taxis, but that my brother could drive and not even need to sit behind the wheel anymore. Because that's what Sherry and I were doing in Phoenix. We were in the back seat as the car drove itself.

And non-taxis, meaning just commuter cars that people are driving day to day, don't have that yet. And so when that clicks, how many of those are going to be sold and how many cars on the road will become self-driving? It's going to be a lot. And I don't know if 2025 is going to be the year of it, but I think regulation is a big part of what holds this back.

And non-taxis, meaning just commuter cars that people are driving day to day, don't have that yet. And so when that clicks, how many of those are going to be sold and how many cars on the road will become self-driving? It's going to be a lot. And I don't know if 2025 is going to be the year of it, but I think regulation is a big part of what holds this back.