Source: Motional announcement

BOSTON – Americans are more willing to accept driverless vehicles today than they were prior to the onset of Covid 19, according to a study sponsored by Motional, a driverless technology company created by Hyundai and Aptiv.

Some one in five (19 percent) of respondents said they were more interested in an autonomous vehicle than they were prior to the pandemic, according to the first Consumer Mobility Report issued by the organization.

And 62 percent believe driverless vehicles are the way of the future.

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“People are more open to driverless vehicles than ever before — but seeing is believing, and this is technology few people have actually experienced,” commented Karl Iagnemma, President and CEO, Motional. “This report makes clear that familiarity is the key to adoption. As we get more cars on the road, we’ll bridge the gap between the perception of this technology, and the reality of how positively and permanently it will change our daily lives.”

Nearly two-thirds of Americans (65 percent) say safety is the most important consideration when making the decision to use a self-driving vehicle.

However, once the safety of the vehicles is established, Americans see the potential positive impact on their lives. In fact, when asked why they would consider opting for a driverless vehicle, safety was the top reason (36 percent), followed by the prospect of multi-tasking during the ride (15 percent), and helping the driving impaired (14 percent).

About Motional

Motional is led by driverless technology pioneers who participated in the historic DARPA Grand Challenge, and founded nuTonomy and Ottomatika, early leaders in the space.  The Motional team was behind some of the industry’s largest leaps forward, including the first fully-autonomous cross-country drive in the U.S., the launch of the world’s first robotaxi pilot (Singapore; 2016), and operation of the world’s most-established public robotaxi fleet (Las Vegas; 2018 – present).  That fleet has provided over 100,000 rides, with 98 percent of riders rating their experience five-out-of-five stars.

The entire announcement, with more comprehensive results of the study, can be found by clicking HERE.