I fully expect every death caused by a self-driving cars to make national headlines in the next few years. Hysteria, whether justified or not, will set in and legislation will pass banning autonomous vehicles in the US.<p>Self-driving cars may have a faster reaction time, but they will never reach the level of human awareness of their surroundings while driving.<p>Let's see a self-driving car navigate through a construction zone, watch for instructions from a police officer who is directing traffic, or stop when kids are playing baseball in a yard and the ball rolls across the street. Answering, "well they'll have that capability someday" isn't a very compelling answer. Truly self-driving cars are dependent on technology that simply hasn't been invented yet.<p>How nice it will be sitting behind a fleet of self-driving cars dragging their asses down the highway at exactly the speed limit, or slamming on the brakes when a leaf flies in front of the sensors.<p>In addition to that, you think masses of people will be silent while losing their jobs because these robot overlords are taking the wheel?<p>Source: I work for a self-driving car startup.