Intel Studies the Self-Driving Car: Tackling the Question of Consumer Acceptance

What is the job of a professional or amateur driver? In the words of Yuval Noah Harari: “A taxi driver can enjoy music while navigating the busy streets of Seoul. His mind may expand in awe as he looks up at the stars and contemplates the mysteries of the universe…. But the system does not need all this from a taxi driver. All it really wants is to bring passengers from point A to point B as quickly, safely, and cheaply as possible. And the autonomous car will soon be able to do that far better than a human driver”.

Harari then mentions the 14th accident of a Google self-driving car in a 6-year period between 2009 and 2015, where the smart car was rear ended by a human driver. Chris Urmson, head of Google’s self-driving program at the time, released the statement: “The clear theme is human error and inattention. We’ll take all this as a signal that we’re starting to compare favourably with human drivers”, found guilty in all 14 accidents. Contrary to instances like this, research still suggests that general acceptance of autonomous vehicles is low.

Research Conducted by Intel:

Intel, the multinational technology giant, is one is the biggest advocates of social integration of self-driving vehicles. Recently, the corporation has been in news for its study on the public acceptance of these cars. Roberto Baldwin reported that the experiment included people who had never ridden an autonomous vehicle. The participants were interviewed before, during, and after the ride, tracking their change of opinions.

Safety levels of the technology, the notion of surrendering control to a machine, and psychological comfort levels of passengers in such situations, were the big talking points initially. This has been understood by scientists already; humans are afraid of change, especially when it involves scientific progress that is not widely understood. The first-hand experience brought out further interesting insights.

The passengers also reported that they did not want to see everything the car was doing. This was mainly a referral to the auto-steering wheel with no driver sitting in the seat. Intel also learnt that voice control is important, and the interaction between the humans and machine eases the situation, and brings some sense of control back. The test subjects also registered their concerns over the special needs of small children, the elderly, and people with disabilities. It was unclear how these cars will handle travellers that require extra care to use the transport system (Baldwin 2017).

Intel claims that this was the first study of its kind. The focus in the autonomous driving industry, so far, has been on the technology aspects of its application. It is refreshing to see that a company is trying to understand its prospective customers, and realising the fact that even the most technologically perfect car will not sell, if the people are simply afraid of being inside it. The company can learn from Consumer Acceptance and Acceptance Testing in the industry.

Consumer Acceptance / Acceptance Testing at a Psychological Level:

Acceptance Testing is a trial conducted to determine if the requirements of a product or service are met. Generally, this involves chemical, physical, and performance tests. In the current dynamic market, the need for a more rounded testing is emerging that calls for the inclusion of the consumer. This requirement is well understood by the food and software industries.

Consumer Acceptance in the Food Industry:

It is accepted as a general rule in the food industry, that most of the public consumption in the developed world is not in terms of necessity, but for joy or health reasons. People are more compelled to buy a product if it looks and/or tastes good, or it can claim to have health benefits. These facts are well exploited in the food and nutrition sector, and almost all new products go through rigorous consumer testing.

Michael Moss, in his best seller “Salt, Sugar, Fat: How the Food Giants Hooked Us”, talks about multiple instances where the packaging and shape of a product requires more funding than the raw materials used in it. This is quite common in the breakfast cereal and perfume industries. The practice may sound dodgy but the bottom line is that these companies understand their customers impressively well.

Intel can tweak its ideas at each stage of the technological advancement of smart cars, by first testing its results on the public. This will help in creating a more acceptable product.

Consumer Acceptance in Software Industry:

Software developers are generally technical experts in their field, but the industry cannot hold its own without selling enough of each product. This has been well understood by the software business, and no product is launched without extensive feedback from a river of chosen testers. This helps the software developers to make their products more user friendly, and fulfil their respective requirements.

The software industry has gone a step further and standardised their testing methods under the International Software Testing Qualification Board (ISTQB) certificates. Anyone can apply for the Foundational Certificate, which can be acquired by sitting through a rigorous exam, including multiple choice questions on the topic. To apply for the Advanced Level, the foundational level must be cleared first. As per requirements, the examination for this level is more thorough and hence, widely accepted in the industry. Intel can learn from this standardisation and create a testing model for its smart cars.

Concluding Remarks on Intel’s Work:

It is important to mention that Intel included only 10 people in this study. Any scientist will tell you that 10 is not a number to base your research around and gain credibility. A topic that may affect millions in the future may require hundreds or even thousands of participants. In a video posted on YouTube, Intel accepted this fact and called for further testing.

The public knows about the invention of smart self-driving cars, but the knowledge over the technology and the benefits of using it are still hazy. Self-Driving cars could revolutionise how we approach travelling and the time spent driving. The technology could also reduce the dependency of city dwellers to always own a vehicle. It is anyways illogical to hold an expensive commodity, like a car, and use it only 10% of the time. The bottom line is, the public should be educated more on the topic, and then integrated into the system on a step-by-step basis, rather than hoping for a natural change. 

Works Cited

Baldwin, R. (2017, August 08). Intel studies how to make people accept self-driving cars. Retrieved from Engadget: https://www.engadget.com/2017/08/24/intel-studies-how-to-make-people-accept-self-driving-cars/

Gibbs, S. (2015, July 17). Crash involving self-driving Google car injures three employees. The Guardian.

Harari, Y. N. (2015). Homo Deus: A Brief History of Tomorrow. Harvill Secker.

Intel (Director). (2017). Trust and Autonomous Driving [Motion Picture]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YdEjbHzMAiM

Intel Newsroom. (2016, July 01). Brian Krzanich: The Future of Autonomous Driving Starts Today. Retrieved from Intel Newsroom: https://newsroom.intel.com/editorials/future-of-autonomous-driving/?_ga=2.90838361.2131494325.1503914452-9670873.1503914452

ISTQB. (2007). Certified Tester: Advanced Level Syllabus. Retrieved from International Software Testing Qualifications Board: http://www.istqb.org/downloads/finish/16/15.html

ISTQB. (2007). Certified Tester: Foundation Level Syllabus. Retrieved from International Software Testing Qualifications Board: http://www.istqb.org/downloads/finish/16/15.html

Moss, M. (2013). Salt, Sugar, Fat: How the Food Giants Hooked Us. New York: Random House.

Siro, I., Kapolna, E., Kapolna, B., & Lugasi, A. (2008). Functional food. Product development, marketing and consumer acceptance—A review. Appetite, 456-467.